The Long Road Home IV - Epilogue
by Kira 47
Summary: A look at the crew's lives in the AQ.
1. Pathfinder

DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God.  All hail Paramount.  They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go.  All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).

Well, here it is.  By popular demand (okay, a couple of emails), the conclusion to my "The Long Road Home" trilogy.  For those of you looking for another massive plot…I'm afraid you'll have to look elsewhere, or at least wait until I cook up something else.  The Epilogue is merely my way of wrapping up the character development and pushing the characters in a new direction at the end.  It's sap, all sap.

In case it hasn't been obvious this far, this is the conclusion to a previous story I wrote, "The Long Road Home" trilogy.  If you haven't read "Separations", "Awakenings", and "Paradise Lost", you're going to be totally, totally lost.  You've been warned.

THE LONG ROAD HOME

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER ONE: PATHFINDER

Captain Janeway took a deep breath and inhaled the salty air deep into her lungs.  There was a slight fog over San Francisco Bay this morning, but the view was still breathtaking.  Beams of sunlight were poking through the fog over the water, creating an almost eerie scene before her as she leaned over the railing on the pier.

It was a month today since her rescue from Section 31, and life was finally starting to get back to normal.  The crew was getting on with their lives, or picking up where they had left off seven years ago.  She had seen them all just last week, at the dedication ceremony for the Voyager Museum.  Most of the crew had been assembled, and Tom had taken the helm one last time to lift Voyager off the parade grounds and fly it over the city to its new permanent location near Starfleet Headquarters.  Admiral Paris had given a speech commending Voyager's crew and all those who had been lost in the course of their journey.  She had said a few words as well, but she had been too emotional to speak for long.  She had found it difficult to listen to Admiral Paris without remembering Admiral Blackwell's words when he had told her about Section 31's knowledge of what would happen to Voyager.  

Starfleet Command had been unable to track down any of the culprits in her kidnapping, although Admiral Paris and Admiral Hayes suspected that Section 31 still had operatives within Starfleet Command, so they would probably continue to operate.

"Captain?"

She turned around to see Seven coming towards her.  Seven had suffered no ill effects from the tests done on her by Section 31.  In fact, there had been one unexpected benefit -- the Doctor had told the Captain that somehow the 'incompetent clods', as the Doctor referred to them, had managed to deactivate some of Seven's remaining implants that the Doctor thought were impossible to remove.  Surprisingly, her human physiology had taken over and somehow stabilized.  As a result, Seven had less than 1% of her original implants still in her body.  The ocular implant above her eye was gone, as was the exoskeleton on her hand.  The only outward sign of her Borg heritage was the starburst implant on her cheek.  She would no longer need to regenerate on a regular basis, and the Doctor believed that it would even be possible for her to have children.  

Before, that was something that Kathryn would have thought Seven would never consider, but watching her deepening intimacy with Commander Walker made her think that it was a definite possibility in the future.

"Seven!  I was beginning to think you hadn't gotten my message."

"I apologize for being late.  I was having lunch with Commander Walker and his daughter.  I wasn't aware of the time."

"It's perfectly all right, Seven.  I was enjoying the view."

Seven walked over to the railing and put her hands behind her back.  "It's impressive."

Kathryn smiled and took another deep breath.  "This has always been one of my favorite spots in San Francisco.  Growing up in Indiana, I've never really gotten used to the sea air.  I love to just stand here and enjoy it."

"What enjoyment can you find in increased humidity and sodium chloride in the atmosphere?"

She turned to explain it to her, but the smile on Seven's face told her that she was joking.

"It's very refreshing," said Seven with a sly grin.

"I didn't ask you to meet me here to discuss the merits of sea air."

Seven raised an eyebrow and waited for the Captain to begin.

She turned around and leaned her side against the railing.  "I've been offered a position heading up the Pathfinder Project."

Seven's eyebrow went higher.  "I do not understand.  The Pathfinder Project's directive is irrelevant now that Voyager has successfully returned."

"They've been given a new directive – to study the new technology we brought back from the Delta quadrant.  Starfleet is particularly interested in some of the new propulsion technologies we came across, and they're looking for people to develop them."  She studied Seven for a few moments before she continued.  "I was hoping you would be one of those people."

Seven's lips parted slightly in surprise.  "You…want me to join the project."

"Your expertise would be invaluable, Seven.  You'd be working with some of the crew from Voyager.  Harry Kim, Joe Carey, Adin Jarel and Vorik and some of the other engineering staff have already requested to be assigned to the project.  Tom and B'Elanna will be joining Pathfinder as soon as they're done their work on the Delta Flyer.  I'll be coordinating the efforts."

"I would report to you?"

"Yes, and you'd also have people reporting to you."

Seven's eyebrow went up again.  "I would be supervising?"

"In part."  She grinned.  "Admiral Hayes has approved my request to give you a commission of lieutenant."

Seven was actually rendered speechless for a full minute.  "Thank you, Captain," she said softly when she found her voice again.

Kathryn beamed.  "Then you'll do it?"

"I accept," confirmed Seven.

"Wonderful," said Kathryn, putting her hand on Seven's arm.  "I was hoping you wouldn't mind staying on Earth."  She grinned knowingly.  "Although I did hear that you had made a somewhat permanent arrangement."

Seven barely concealed a smile.  "If you are referring to Commander Walker…we will be sharing an apartment."

"That's wonderful, Seven.  I'm happy for you."

"Mark tells me that Commander Chakotay will be teaching at Starfleet Academy," said Seven, returning the Captain's knowing grin.

Kathryn nodded, smiling to herself.  Chakotay had been given the choice between his own command and a teaching position at Starfleet Academy.  She was sure the offer of his own ship must have been tempting, but he had turned it down in favor of the teaching position so he could be near Kathryn.

"Annika!"

The two women turned around to see Cassandra Walker and Naomi Wildman tearing down the pier towards them.  Kathryn turned towards Seven with a surprised expression -- that was the first time she had ever heard someone other than Mark use Seven's given name.

"Annika!" repeated Cassandra as she neared them.  "Dad said he's going to take us to see Angel Falls.  Do you want to come?"

"Please, Seven?" pleaded Naomi.

Seven sighed and glanced at the Captain.  "Was there anything more you wanted to discuss, Captain?"

"No -- I'll contact you later with the particulars."

She turned back to Naomi and Cassandra.  "In that case, I will join you.  Where is your father?"

Cassandra turned around.  "He's coming, but he walks too slow."

They could see Mark coming towards them, trailing behind the two girls. 

"Would you like to join us, Captain?" asked Naomi.

Before Kathryn could reply, Cassandra interrupted.  "She's meeting Commander Chakotay."

Kathryn laughed.  "That's right.  Maybe some other time."

"Cassandra," reprimanded Seven, "Your father has warned you about reading the thoughts of others."

"We're going for dinner later in Chinatown," continued Cassandra undaunted.

Naomi picked up where her friend left off.  "Would you and the Commander like to come, Captain?"

"I can't make any promises, but I'll certainly try," she assured them.

Cassandra and Naomi nodded, satisfied.  Mark arrived, and the girls immediately started tugging on his arms, urging him to follow them back down the pier in the direction he had come.  Seven started to follow, but stopped and turned back to the Captain.

"Was there something else, Seven?"

Seven paused.  "I have a request."

"What is it?"

"My commission…I have decided to go by my human name."

Kathryn was too surprised to make a response for a few seconds.  "Well…I'll see that you're entered into Starfleet records as Annika Hansen, then."

Seven nodded satisfactorily and started to leave.  She stopped when the Captain addressed her again.

"Do you mind if I ask why you've changed your mind after all this time?"

Seven thought for a moment. "Mark and Cassandra both call me by that name.  I have come to…identify myself with it, to an extent that I never did before."  She smiled.  "And I do not think that 'Lieutenant of Nine' has a…pleasing ring to it."

Kathryn chuckled.  "No, I suppose not.  It might take me a while to get used to calling you Annika."

"I have no objection to anyone calling me Seven," she replied.  "Mark suggested that it be…a nickname."

"A nickname…I like that."  Kathryn patted her on the arm.  "I'll see you at dinner tonight."

Seven nodded and then followed Mark and the girls down the pier.

Kathryn turned back around and leaned over the railing, looking back out over the bay.  She wasn't sure how long she had been standing there lost in thought when she felt somebody come up behind her and a strong pair of arms went around her waist.

"Enjoying the view?" whispered Chakotay in her ear.

"Mmm," she said, leaning her head against him.  "More so now."

"What did Seven say?"

Kathryn grinned.  "She accepted.  I don't think I've ever seen her speechless before."

"Was she surprised about the commission?"

"Not as surprised as I was -- she wants me to enter her as Lieutenant Annika Hansen."

"Really -- I guess Mark's made quite an impact on her."

"I guess so.  Oh, that reminds me -- we're meeting them for dinner tonight, unless you have any objections."

"Of course not.  I know how much you love seeing the crew."

She grinned.  "That's why I jumped at the opportunity to head up the Pathfinder Project.  There must be nearly a third of the crew that's requested to be assigned to it."

"I told you something would come up."

She lifted her hands in defeat.  "And you were absolutely right."  She turned around.  "When am I ever going to learn to listen to you?"

"Hopefully never.  That would take all the fun out of arguing with you."

She grinned and took his arm.  "Now…what do you say we go have some lunch.  I know a little coffee shop near the academy…"

*    *    *

Sunlight filtered through the large window, striking the furniture at odd angles and creating a pattern on the light-colored carpet.  The window was open slightly, and the long drapes flapped gently in the breeze coming through.  A large monitor sat near the window, a shaft of light striking one corner.

A hand reached up and pulled the drapes closed a little, stopping the light from hitting the screen and making it easier to see the young blonde woman standing in a park in front of a ship.

"People came out in droves to visit the U.S.S. Voyager museum today to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the ship's return home after seven years in the Delta quadrant.  Interestingly, today also marks the anniversary of when Voyager was thrown into the Delta Quadrant eight years ago.  After traveling over 30,000 light years through uncharted space, Captain Kathryn Janeway took her ship through a wormhole to the Gamma quadrant, where they traversed Dominion space to the Bajoran wormhole at Deep Space Nine.

A short private ceremony was held on board this morning, and sources say there will be a reunion for the Voyager crew later this afternoon."

Kathryn Janeway reached over and turned off the monitor then reached for a brush, running it through her hair one last time.  She appraised her appearance in the mirror.  Without being egotistical, she knew she looked good.  She was sure she looked years younger than she had upon Voyager's return.  A year on Earth living with Chakotay and working with her crew on the Pathfinder project had slowly removed the fine lines that had grown up around her eyes during her time in the Delta quadrant.  She put on a little weight, but it looked good on her, hiding the toll that seven years of near-constant stress had taken on her body.  She was wearing a dark blue top with a v-neck, and a striking pair of black dress pants.  She ran her hands over the top one more time, smoothing it out.

"Chakotay," she called over her shoulder.  "We're going to be late."

His voice behind her startled her.  "I've been ready for ten minutes."

She turned around to see him standing with her jacket in his hands.  Chuckling, she turned around and allowed him to hold the jacket as she slipped her arms into the sleeves and shrugged it onto her shoulders.

She turned around.  "I forgot -- do you have the directions to the place Tom and B'Elanna rented?"

He nodded.  "Of course."

She laughed.  "What would I ever do without you?"

A raised eyebrow and a lopsided grin was his only reply.

"Oh," she said suddenly, turning around and starting for her desk.  "I forgot I was supposed to look over those projections that --"

He grabbed her arm and started pulling her towards the door.  "Later, Kathryn."

She tried to pull her arm out of his grip.  "I'll just be five minutes."

"We're already late.  You don't want to be the last one there, do you?  Everyone's expecting us."

She glared at him for a moment, but then broke out in a smile and let him pull her towards the door.

"Eight years and I'm still dragging you away from your work," he grumbled.

Her laughter echoed in the empty apartment as the doors slid shut behind them.


	2. Reunions

DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God.  All hail Paramount.  They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go.  All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).

THE LONG ROAD HOME

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER TWO: REUNIONS

"Captain!  Commander!  Good to see you!" cried Neelix as they entered.  "Where have you been?  We've been waiting for you to arrive."

Chakotay smirked, and she deliberately elbowed him as he removed her jacket for her.  "Sorry, Neelix, we…I wasn't watching the time."

"I had to pull her away from her work," clarified Chakotay.  "Literally."

"Just like old times," said Neelix with a laugh.

"Just like old times," agreed Kathryn with a smile.  "How are you, Neelix?  How's the restaurant business?"

"Oh, it's wonderful, thank you Captain.  Leola root doesn't seem to go over as well on Earth as it did on Voyager, but everyone is eager to try out the delicacies of the Delta Quadrant."

"We'll have to stop by sometime," said Chakotay.

"I'll save you the best table in the house," promised Neelix.

The Captain smiled and started to follow Chakotay into the crowd, but caught Neelix by the shoulder as she passed him. 

"Neelix?" she said quietly into his ear.  "If we do come by for dinner sometime…could you possibly leave out the leola root?"

His hurt expression was obvious.  "Of…of course, Captain."

"It's just not the same replicated," she explained, pouting.

The injured expression evaporated.  "Ah…no, you're right, it isn't.  It's a shame there's nothing like it in this quadrant."

She agreed with a nod, then patted his shoulder and moved off.

After mingling in the crowd for a few minutes, she looked around and discovered that she and Chakotay had been separated.  Before she could locate him, she was approached by the Doctor.

"Captain!  It's good to see you."

"You too, Doctor."

He preened.  "Please, Captain, call me Lewis."

Her eyebrows nearly jumped off her forehead. "Lewis?  I take it you've finally chosen a name?"

"Doctor Lewis Talera.  I thought my presentations at medical conferences deserved a better by-line than 'Voyager's EMH.'"

"What made you decide?"

"I was Seven, actually.  We were discussing her decision to take her human name, and she asked me why I had never chosen one."

"Lewis Talera  – who was he?"

"Nobody," said the Doctor proudly.  "Seven asked me why I wanted to name myself after somebody else when I was, 'a unique individual', I think she said.  I realized she was right, so I simply chose a name."

"Lewis?  After Dr. Zimmerman?"

"Yes.  It's often customary for a name to be passed from father to son.  Dr. Zimmerman is the closest thing I have to a father."

"And Talera?"

"It's Vulcan.  Loosely translated, it means 'traveler'…or 'voyager.'"

Kathryn laughed.  "That's very clever, Doctor…or should I say, Lewis.  It might take me a while to get used to that."

He smirked.  "You're not the only one."

The Doctor looked over her shoulder and smiled.  "I'd tell you more, but it appears that your attention is required elsewhere, Captain."

She turned around to see Naomi Wildman standing patiently behind her.  "Naomi!" she said, enveloping the girl in a hug.  Naomi had grown so tall that the Captain barely had to lean over to reach her.  "It's good to see you.  How have you been?"

"Lieutenant Paris took me on a shuttle ride around the rings of Saturn," said Naomi proudly.  "He even let me drive.  He said I'm a natural."

The Captain chuckled.  "Is your mother around?"

Naomi looked around and shrugged.  "I haven't seen her since we got here."

"If you see her, tell her I'd love to say hello."

Naomi nodded.  "Have you seen Seven?  She's looking for you."

The Captain raised an eyebrow.  She had spoken with Seven only yesterday morning at Utopia Planitia, so she wondered why she would be looking for her.  "No, I haven't.  I didn't know she was here yet."

Naomi's eyes widened in excitement and she clapped her hands.  "She has something she wants to tell you."

"What's that?"

"She made me promise not to tell.  It would ruin the surprise."

Her curiosity peaked, Kathryn looked around the room.  "I'll try and find her.  Thank you, Naomi."

"You're welcome, Captain.  Oh -- have you seen Neelix?"

"He's over there, near the door," she told her, pointing.

Naomi grinned and ran off to speak with her godfather.  The Captain stood up and looked around the room again, trying to find Seven.  She broke off her search when she saw Icheb approaching her.

"Captain," he acknowledged as he joined her.

"Icheb.  How are things at the Academy?"

"Challenging.  But I am finding it to be a rewarding experience."

"I hear you're at the top of your class."

"Second, actually," he corrected.  Seeing her amused expression, he added with a grin, "But I believe I…aced…my last quantum mechanics exam.  That may put me in first position."

"We're all very proud of you, Icheb."

The young man beamed with genuine pride.  "Thank you, Captain."

"Did you have any trouble adjusting?"

"It was difficult at first," he admitted.  "I had grown used to life on Voyager, but I have adapted to the Academy."

"I'm glad to hear it."

"I took your advice and sought out the gardener, Boothby."

"Oh?  What did you think?"

"He is an interesting individual."

She laughed.  "And he gives excellent advice."

"He recommended I engage Cadet Bennet in recreational activities."

"Ask her out on a date?" she said with a smile.  "And?"

Icheb blushed.  "It was good advice."

She laughed.  "By the way, have you seen Seven?"

"Yes.  She is looking for you."

"So I've heard."

"Excuse me, Captain," he said, stepping away from her and into the crowd and disappearing before she had a chance to say another word.  She frowned, wondering what was going on.  She looked around the room to see if she could catch a glimpse of Seven.  She couldn't see her, but she spotted Chakotay and Harry Kim talking not too far away, so she started over to join them.  Before she got very far, she heard Tom Paris call after her.

"Captain," he said with a grin,  catching up with her and offering her champagne.  "You'll be needing this if you're going to make a toast."

"I wasn't planning on it."

"Nonsense.  I insist.  And so will everyone else if they don't get to hear from you on such an illustrious occasion."

She chuckled and sipped the champagne.

Tom glanced over at Harry and Chakotay and smiled.  "Well, I guess married life is agreeing with Harry.  Looks like he's filling Chakotay in on the good news."

The Captain frowned -- Harry's marriage to Megan Delaney was hardly new information, as the wedding had been over six months ago.  Both she and Chakotay, along with a large number of Voyager's crew, had attended the wedding, so she couldn't figure out what Tom was referring to.  "Good news?"

Tom's jaw dropped.  "Uh…Harry hasn't told you?"

"Told me what?"

"Nothing."

"Out with it, Tom."

"No way.  I'm not going to spoil your surprise."

She sighed in frustration and waved her hands in the air.  "First Seven, now Harry.  Why is it nobody tells me anything anymore?"

Tom's eyebrow went up.  "Whoa, wait a minute.  You haven't talked to Seven yet?"

"No…why?"

"You'd better find her, and quick.  I don't even want to think about what she'll do if somebody tells you before she does.  I think she said something along the lines of making assimilation seem like a picnic."

"What are you talking about?"

He smiled disarmingly and chuckled as he stepped around her and moved off into the crowd.

She sighed in frustration and moved over to join Harry and Chakotay.  They were both grinning from ear to ear.  

"So, Harry," began the Captain as she joined them.  "What's this Tom tells me about good news?"

"He told you?" squeaked Harry.  "I thought I told him to keep his big mouth --"

"He didn't tell me anything," said the Captain, holding up her hand in Tom's defense.  "He just said you had some good news."

Harry's angry expression evaporated and was replaced by a grin again.  "Oh…uh…It's Megan.  She's pregnant."

Kathryn was speechless for a few seconds before she stepped forward and embraced Harry.  "Oh, Harry, congratulations.  I'm sure the two of you will make wonderful parents."

"Thank you, Captain."

"So where is your charming wife?"

"Around spreading the news, no doubt," said Harry.

"At the rate news travels in this circle," said Chakotay with a grin, "I'm surprised that everyone in the room doesn't know already."

With perfect timing as usual, Neelix joined their group.  "Congratulations, Lieutenant!" he said, clapping Harry on the shoulder.  "Have you thought about a godfather yet?"

"Uh…"

Kathryn and Chakotay took the opportunity and quietly slipped away.

"Have you seen Seven?" she asked.

He grinned.  "No, but I heard.  What do you think?"

"About what?" she said, nearing the end of her patience.  "I haven't talked to her yet."

His eyes widened and he reached over to grab her arm.  "Come on.  We'd better go find her _now."_

"What exactly is so urgent?" she laughed as he half-dragged her through the crowd.

"I don't want to be in the sector if she finds out she wasn't the one to tell you."

"Tell me what?"

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow.  "I said, I'm not going to tell you."

She rolled her eyes.  "Come on, Chakotay."

He stopped walking and faced her with a huge grin, his eyes laughing.  "You can't stand it, can you?  Not knowing."

"Tell me," she pleaded.  When he just laughed, she glared.

They continued moving around the room, and finally spotted Mark and Seven up on the second floor of the large apartment, leaning against the railing that overlooked the main floor.  They had their backs to them, and they could see that Mark's arm was around Seven's waist.

Chakotay led the way up the spiral staircase, making their way around people coming down.  It took them a few minutes to make their way over to the couple, having to stop and say hello to all the familiar faces, but they eventually neared the railing and saw Seven and Mark talking to the Doctor, who was beaming.  As soon as he saw the Captain and Chakotay, he excused himself and was out of sight before the Captain even had a chance to speak to him again.  She looked after him in puzzlement, then looked at Seven.

"Seven, what is going on?"

Seven looked at Mark and raised her eyebrow questioningly.  Mark studied the Captain for a second, then grinned and leaned over towards Seven.  "Looks like your widespread threats paid off.  She doesn't know."

Seven sighed in relief, then smiled.  "It's good to see you, Captain."

Mark picked up the hint and motioned to Chakotay to leave the two women alone.

The Captain looked at Seven with a raised eyebrow, noting with surprise her glowing expression, one unlike any she had ever seen on the ex-drone.  Seven was wearing black pants and a soft blue sweater that complemented her complexion.  She had some of her hair pulled loosely behind her head, and the rest fell down around her shoulders.

"Mark and I had dinner last night," began Seven with a smile, her eyes dancing.

By this point, Kathryn had reached the end of her patience and was dying of curiosity.  "And?"

Seven was no stranger to cutting to the chase.  "And he proposed."

The Captain's jaw dropped and she was speechless for a few seconds.  "Proposed…as in marriage?"

Seven lifted up her hand to display the delicate ring on her finger, made of some kind of blue gemstone.  "I accepted."

The Captain reached over to take her hand, examining the ring.  "Oh, it's beautiful."  She looked back up at Seven.  "Oh, Seven, that's wonderful."

She released Seven's hand and moved over to give her an emotional hug.  Kathryn's eyes filled with tears as she felt Seven squeeze her back, returning the embrace.

She stepped away with a laugh, wiping a tear from her eye.  "Hard to believe you're the same woman I dragged kicking and screaming away from the collective five years ago."

Seven looked like she was on the verge of tears as well.  "I would never have come this far without you, Captain.  Your assistance has been invaluable to me.  I hope you realize that."

The Captain smiled.  "I think your fiancé deserves some credit too.  I never could get you to go by Annika."

Seven smiled.  "I would tell you precisely how and when he changed my mind, but it is…rather personal."

Kathryn frowned, not understanding.  After a few seconds, realization dawned.  "Oh.  I see."

Seven blushed, but fortunately was saved the trouble of extricating herself from her embarrassment when they were joined again by Chakotay and Mark.

"Well?" said Chakotay.

"For once, I'm glad you kept me in suspense."

"I can't believe you've been here twenty minutes and nobody told you," said Mark.

"I anticipated the rate at which information is disseminated among this crew," said Seven with a smile.  "I issued warnings to everyone I spoke to that Captain Janeway was not to be informed of this until I told her myself."

"Making assimilation seem like a picnic?" said Kathryn with a raised eyebrow.

Seven smirked.  "I thought a more potent threat was necessary for Tom.  He's notorious at spreading information."

"Speak of the devil," said Mark, seeing Tom approaching them.

Seven raised her eyebrow and stared at him impassively, and Tom joined them with an apprehensive look on his face.  

"I didn't tell her, I swear," he said, holding his hands up defensively.

Seven let him off the hook, relaxing her expression.  "I was able to inform the Captain myself."

Tom let out a deep breath.  "Good."  He turned to the Captain.  "I think everyone's accounted for.  Would you care to open the festivities?"

"By all means."  She reached over to grab a spoon off a nearby table, then stepped over to the railing.  Holding up her glass, she tapped it lightly with a spoon to get the room's attention.  When the noise and conversation continued undaunted, she tapped her glass louder and spoke up.  "Could I have your attention, please?"

When the room still didn't quiet down, Tom stepped up beside her.  "Captain?  May I?"

She gestured towards the railing.  "Be my guest."

Tom put two fingers in his mouth and gave a loud shrill whistle.  Conversation in the room stopped instantly, and all heads turned towards the balcony.  "Sorry to interrupt, people," he said loudly.  "But the Captain would like to say a few words.  Before she does, though, there's a couple of things we have to get out of the way.  Any of you who have had your fingers in your ears since you arrived may have missed the two pieces of news that are going around.  On behalf of everyone, I'd like to congratulate my best friend Harry Kim and his beautiful wife Megan, who are expecting their first child."

The entire room broke out in applause.

"Some of you may not have heard the second piece of news, which has been…uh…classified until a few minutes ago.  I've been informed by Seven herself…I mean, Annika…that she and Commander Walker are engaged.  I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say congratulations and good luck."

"You're going to need it, Annika," yelled Talia from the crowd below, drawing laughter from around the room.

Tom stepped aside and made room for the Captain.  She chuckled and stepped up to the railing.  She looked around at the people below her, her eyes roaming the crowd for familiar faces.  There were a few people she didn't recognize, but most of those gathered below were from her crew.  "Well," she said, lifting up her glass.  "Here we are again.  First of all, I'd like to say how wonderful it is to see all of you again."

"Hear, hear," said a multitude of voices, and glasses were raised in salute around the room.

"One year ago today, this crew returned from the longest away mission in Starfleet history."  That drew laughs from around the room.  "Eight years ago today, we all met under what was hardly the best of circumstances.  We were all stranded, half a galaxy away from home.  I don't hesitate to say it brought out the best in all of you.  Everyone, Starfleet and Maquis alike, put aside their differences and learned to work together.  And it paid off – we traveled over thirty _thousand light years in seven years.  We lost people along the way, and we grew closer.  And we made it home.  We did it."_

She paused a minute to collect herself, and she felt Chakotay step up behind her and lay his hand gently on the small of her back.

"It's hard to believe, isn't it," she said with a smile as she continued to look around the room.  "Eight years ago, I didn't know any of you.  It feels like an eternity ago.  I could never have imagined growing as close to anyone as I have to the people gathered here today.  We spent seven years together.  Living, fighting, laughing.  We became a family.  And our family is only going to grow with time."  She lifted up her glass.  "May we never grow apart.  To family."

"To family," echoed the room.

"Now, I'll let you all get back to catching up."  She paused again before stepping away.  "It's good to be together again."

The room started to grow noisy again, but Harry spoke up.  "I think I speak for everyone in this room when I say that the only reason we're all here today is because of that woman up there.  No crew could have asked for a better Captain."

"You're just saying that because you finally got that promotion," yelled Tom from the second floor, drawing laughs from around the room.

Harry glared at him but continued.  "In case I've never said this before, Captain, serving under you was the best thing any green ensign could have asked for."  The crowd chuckled again.  "To the Captain," he said, holding up his glass.

"To the Captain," repeated the crowd.

B'Elanna, balancing Miral on her hip with one hand and holding up her glass in the other, stepped up beside Harry and spoke up.  "She believed in us before we even believed in ourselves, and gave us all a chance to prove ourselves.  Even if we didn't do anything to deserve it.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who's a better person for serving under her."  She raised her glass.  "Thank you, Captain.  And I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say that I'm glad it only took you and Chakotay seven years to come to your senses.  At least it only took Tom and I three."

The room exploded in laughter and applause.

Kathryn smiled through the tears in her eyes.  "Thank you," she said, but her throat caught and it came out as a whisper.

Chakotay stepped up beside her and brushed away a tear that rolled down her cheek.  "Eight years."

"Eight years," she smiled.  "Happy anniversary."

Then, regardless that almost two hundred people were watching them, she leaned forward and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

The crowd cheered and whistled.

Not that they could hear it, or even cared.


	3. Family

DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God.  All hail Paramount.  They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go.  All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).

THE LONG ROAD HOME

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER THREE: FAMILY

Chakotay and Kathryn strolled down the streets of San Francisco, the leaves blowing past them in the autumn breeze. 

"It's so nice to see the leaves turning color again," commented Kathryn, tilting her head back to watch the leaves swirling above her head.

He looked at her.  "This is the third autumn we've been back, and you've never even mentioned that you like the leaves."

She smiled.  "I never realize how much I miss them until autumn rolls around."

"You never cease to amaze me."

She laughed and shifted the package she was carrying to her other arm so she could reach over and take his hand.

They reached the building they were looking for, a small apartment near the waterfront.  Kathryn pressed the chime, and the door opened after a few seconds.  The lights were off, and Cassandra Walker and Naomi Wildman poked their heads out.

Despite the fact that Naomi's Ktarian genes had caused her to quickly outgrow her Betazoid friend, the two girls had remained close friends.  It was hard to believe that Naomi was actually just over eight years old, given her appearance of seventeen.

"Come on," hissed Cassandra, pulling them inside as Naomi stuck her head out the door and checked the street in both directions.  Satisfied that the coast was clear, Naomi pulled her head back inside and shut the door.  She stepped behind Kathryn and Chakotay, pushing them into the next room.

"They'll be here any minute," she whispered.

The room they entered was dark, but they could hear muffled noises coming from around the room.

"It was Admiral Janeway and Chakotay," said Cassandra to the dark room.

"It's about time," said Tom from the darkness.

"Surprise!" said a childish voice.

"Shh!  Miral, not yet," said a voice that sounded like B'Elanna.  "Chakotay, hurry up and hide."

"They're due back any second," whispered Harry.

"Admiral, Chakotay, there's room over here," said Tom's voice over to the right.

She and Chakotay felt their way in his direction, then crouched down behind what felt like a couch.

"Good to see you," said Tom's voice from beside them.

"In a manner of speaking," muttered Chakotay.  "I can't see more than ten centimeters in front of my face."

Tom snickered.

"Make room," whispered Kathryn.  "I don't think I'm completely hidden."

She felt arms go around her waist, and she was pulled close to someone behind her.

"Chakotay, that had better be you."

In response, he kissed the base of her neck as she was curled next to his chest, and she laughed softly.

"Shhhh!" said a voice from across the room.

"Ow!" said Harry's voice.  "Miral, that's my foot."

"Surprise!" yelled Miral in response.

"Somebody had better keep her quiet before she gives us all away," said the Doctor.

"I've got her," said B'Elanna.

"Surprise!" said Miral again, but this time the sound was muffled by B'Elanna's hand covering her mouth.

"Shhhh, honey," she admonished.

Naomi and Cassandra tore into the room.  "They're coming!" squealed Cassandra.  She and Naomi dove into their previous hiding spot.  Unfortunately, they were unaware that it was now occupied by Kathryn and Chakotay, and the two girls bowled into the pair.

"Oof!" grunted Kathryn.

"Sorry, Admiral," said Cassandra, as she and Naomi squished behind the couch.

"Shhhh!" said Tom.

The room finally became silent, and they could hear the front doors slide open.

"Here, let me take that," they heard Mark's voice from the entrance.  "So, you never answered my question.  What do you think of 'Tam' for a boy?"

There was a pause before they heard Annika answer.  "Tam…I'll put it on the list."

She spoke again, her voice approaching the room they were concealed in.  "Why is it dark in here?  Computer, lights."

As soon as the lights came on, the concealed group jumped out of their hiding spots with a collective "Surprise!"

Annika looked around with a raised eyebrow.  "I hope you were not concealed for too long," she observed. "It must have been an uncomfortable wait."

The group groaned collectively.  "You're supposed to be surprised, Annika," said B'Elanna.

Miral jumped up on the chair she, B'Elanna, and Harry had been concealed behind.  "Surprise!" she shouted, throwing her arms up in the air.  "Baby shower!"

Annika raised an eyebrow.  "Thank you, Miral."  

The young girl jumped up and down on the chair.  "Time to open the presents!"

Tom moved over and scooped up his daughter, holding her upside down as she squealed in delight.  "They're not for you, honey, remember?"

"Presents?" said Annika as she moved into the crowded room, waddling slightly due to her bulging stomach.

"It's tradition, Seven," said Kathryn.  "We've done it for every member of this crew, and you're no exception."

She smiled as she lowered herself slowly onto the couch.  "Proceed," she said.  Although it had been one of her favorite words in the past, she said it now with more emotion, and a more obvious human inflection.

After the presents had been opened, Neelix's pistachio cake with parra crème sauce was served.  Chakotay grabbed a piece for himself and one for Kathryn, and moved over to join her on the couch.  She took the plate from him absentmindedly, watching Annika across the room with a smile.  She was leaning back on the couch, her hand resting lightly on her belly with her fingers splayed.  Megan Kim and B'Elanna were on either side of her, probably giving her some much-needed advice.  Megan and B'Elanna were both talking animatedly, while Annika sat quietly, absorbing it all.  Megan was balancing her nine-month old son Travis on her knee.  B'Elanna had Miral on her lap, but the feisty toddler was in no mood to sit still when there was dessert to be had.  She squirmed out of her mother's arms and ran over to join Kathryn and Chakotay.  She climbed up between them.

"Hi," she said as she settled between them.

"Have you had any cake, Miral?" asked Chakotay, noticing her eagerly eyeing the plate in his hands.

She shook her head, her dark hair bouncing on her shoulders.

He smiled.  "I'll go get you some."

"Are you having fun, Miral?" asked Kathryn as she tried a piece of cake.

Miral nodded enthusiastically.  "I like parties."

"It will be your birthday pretty soon, won't it?"

Miral held up three fingers.  "Three years old," she said proudly.   "In two months and eleven days!  Daddy helped me count."  A thought occurred to her.  "Will you come to my party?"

"I wouldn't miss it," Kathryn assured her.

Chakotay returned with a Miral-sized piece of cake, which the young girl took eagerly.  "Thank you," she said politely before digging into the cake.

Kathryn returned her attention to Annika across the room, and the corners of a mouth turned up in a smile.  Mark had taken B'Elanna's place on the couch as Tom claimed his wife and pulled her away from the small group on the couch.  Mark reached over and brushed a blond strand of hair from his wife's face before kissing her on the cheek.  She reached over and took his hand, resting their clasped hands on her belly.

"She looks happy, doesn't she?" observed Chakotay.

Kathryn's smile widened.  "She's positively glowing," she agreed.

Miral looked up from her cake and clapped her hands together.  "Seven glows," she said proudly.  'Seven' was easier for her to pronounce than 'Annika', which usually came out as 'nicker', so she had taken to calling her by her nickname, as Kathryn still did.   

Chakotay and Kathryn chuckled.  "She's getting to be quite the little talker," observed Kathryn.

"She's even more talkative than the last time we saw her," agreed Chakotay.

Miral, engrossed in her own train of thought, continued talking.  "Mommy glows," she said eagerly with a smile.

Kathryn laughed.  "No, sweetheart, we were talking about Seven."

"Mommy glows," insisted the toddler.

Chakotay indulged her.  "Where did you hear that?"

She beamed.  "Daddy!"

Chakotay and Kathryn frowned, then looked up at each other.  At the same time, their expressions of puzzlement were replaced with astonishment as their eyes widened.  They both glanced across the room where Tom and B'Elanna were standing together in a corner apart from the others, talking intimately.

"Do you think…" began Kathryn, not taking her eyes off B'Elanna.

"I would have thought she'd tell us, but it's possible."

B'Elanna glanced away from her husband and looked around the room, happening to meet their eyes as they examined her.  She seemed confused for a moment, wondering why they were staring at her, but then her lips parted suddenly as she noticed Miral sitting between them. She rolled her eyes and sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat.  She turned back to her husband, and although they couldn't hear what she said, Kathryn thought she could make out the words "inherited your big mouth" on B'Elanna's lips.  Tom looked over at them in surprise, then sighed and shook his head with a chuckle.

Kathryn raised her eyebrow in question and glanced over at Chakotay before looking back at Tom and B'Elanna.  B'Elanna grabbed her husband by the hand and led him over to where Kathryn, Chakotay and Miral were seated.

"Honey," said B'Elanna as they approached.  "I thought Daddy and I had a talk with you about keeping secrets."

Miral turned to Kathryn.  "It's a secret," she said gravely.

"She didn't tell us, B'Elanna," said Kathryn quickly.

"Mommy glows," said Miral fondly.

Tom chuckled and reached down to pick up his daughter.  "If you weren't such a little parrot…"

"So?" said Chakotay, looking at them.

B'Elanna smiled self consciously and looked at Tom before she met their gaze again.  "We were going to wait a few weeks before telling anybody… "

In Tom's arms, Miral clapped her hands together.  "I'm getting a baby sister!" she said happily.

"Not so loud, sweetheart," admonished B'Elanna.

"Is it a girl?" asked Kathryn as she and Chakotay moved closer to each other to make room for Tom and B'Elanna.

"We want to be surprised this time," said Tom as they sat down.

"Baby sister!" insisted Miral.

"Miral seems to have her own preference, though," said B'Elanna.

"I guess we'll just have to wait and find out," said Tom with a grin.

*    *    *

Chakotay groaned and cracked his eyes open reluctantly.  Their bedroom was still dark, so he knew it was early.  Looking down at his chest, he could see that Kathryn was still sound asleep, breathing softly as she was draped over him, her head nestled next to his shoulder.

It took a few seconds for him to hear the noise that had obviously woken him up.

_Incoming transmission, said the familiar tone of the computer._

He frowned – who would be calling them this early?  He lifted Kathryn off him, setting her down gently on the bed.  She mumbled and inhaled deeply before opening her eyes as he rose from their bed.  Laying on her stomach, she propped herself up on her elbows and looked at the chronometer as Chakotay sat on the edge of the bed putting a pair of pants on.

"0247?" she muttered incredulously.  "What could somebody want at this hour?"

Chakotay walked over to the comm station at the desk and sat down.  When he activated the screen, he saw Commander Walker on the other end and frowned.  "Mark?"

When Kathryn heard him, she bolted upright in bed and reached for a shirt sitting on the floor, pulling it over her head in one swift motion before jumping out of bed and moving over to the desk.

"Sorry to bother you so late," said Mark.  "Is Kathryn there?"

"Right here, Mark," she said as she stepped around the desk and sat on Chakotay's lap in the chair.  "Is there something wrong?"

"Annika went into labor about an hour ago."

Kathryn quickly did the math in her head.  Seven had been eight months pregnant when they had thrown the baby shower, but that had only been…three weeks ago.  "It's early," she said.  "The doctors estimated nine and a half months, didn't they?"

"Yes, but they don't think there will be any problems."  He paused.  "I know it's late, but I think she'd appreciate your presence, Kathryn.  They've given her some analgesics, but the nanoprobes in her system are just assimilating it and very little is actually having an effect."

"Are you at Starfleet Medical?"

"Yes."

"We'll be there as soon as we can," Kathryn assured him.

"Thank you."

*    *    *

Annika let out a cry as another contraction seized her and she gripped Kathryn's hand.

"You're doing great, Annika," Mark assured her.  "Almost there."

She responded with another yell.  When she was able to catch her breath, she muttered.  "I see why the Borg chose assimilation.  This is an inefficient means of procreation."

Kathryn laughed, knowing that Annika was not serious in her use of the Borg phrase.  In fact, she looked incredibly human right now, her face glowing with perspiration and tendrils of blond hair clinging to her forehead.

"You're doing well, Seven," said Doctor Talera.  "Just a few more minutes."

"That's easy for you to say," she growled.  "I would like to see you try this.  Without analgesics."

He was obviously ashamed.  "Well, if you ever have other children, I'm sure I can –"

"I am _never doing this agaiAAAAAAAA!" said Annika as another contraction began._

Kathryn looked up at Mark.  "Is she serious?" she whispered.

He shook his head with a smile.  "I doubt it."

The Doctor turned to one of his assistants.  "Bring me the incubator."

"Yes, Doctor."

He turned back to Annika.  "Seven…"  When he saw that her eyes were squeezed shut and the force with which she was squeezing Kathryn's hand, he turned instead to Mark.  "When the next contraction begins, she needs to push."

Mark nodded in understanding.

Annika relaxed her grip on Kathryn's hand as the contraction passed.  "You're doing great, Annika," she assured her, reaching over to wipe the perspiration off her forehead.

She looked at her curiously.  "That is the first time you have called me Annika," she observed.

Kathryn smiled.  "So it is."

She smiled back, but gripped her hand again as another contraction began.

"Push, Annika," said Mark.  "You have to push."

She yelled as she did so.

"Just a little more, Seven," said the Doctor.

Annika screamed again, but this time her voice was joined by the crying of an infant.

The Doctor stood up with the wailing child in his arms, cleaning it off with a blanket.

He turned to the proud parents.  "It's a girl."

Annika smiled and slumped back on the bed with a smile on her face.  "A girl," she repeated happily.

The Doctor checked the new baby out thoroughly before wrapping her up and bringing her over to gently place her in her mother's arms.  "Congratulations, Seven."

Annika took the bundle gratefully as her husband hung over her shoulder, beaming.  "Hello there," he said, reaching over run a finger along her cheek.

"She's so small," said Annika in awe, picking up one of her daughter's tiny hands in hers.

Kathryn leaned over, running her finger along the infant's cheek.  "Have you decided on a name?"

Annika looked up at her, a tear running down her cheek.  "Erin," she said softly.  "After my mother."

"Hello, Erin," said Kathryn quietly.  She observed the baby for a few more minutes before she stood up.  "I'll go tell the others and send in Cassie."

Annika looked up again momentarily.  "Thank you, Admiral."

She smiled.  "Annika, I think it's about time you started calling me Kathryn."

"Kathryn…"  She looked at Mark, who nodded with a smile.  "We would be honored if you would consider becoming Erin's godmother."

Kathryn's smile widened.  "I would be delighted."

Annika nodded, pleased, then returned her attention to her child.

Kathryn smiled back at the happy family, then left the delivery room and made her way to the small room where many of Voyager's former crew were waiting.  Chakotay, Harry, and Megan were sitting at a small table entertaining Miral, and Neelix was sitting in a chair with Cassandra Walker.  Tom was sitting on a couch, and B'Elanna was stretched out along its length, her head resting in his lap.  When Tom saw her enter the room, he woke his wife and caught the attention of the group at the table.

When they were all looking at her, she smiled.  

"It's a girl."

*    *    *

A half-hour later, Kathryn stood at the window in front of the delivery room, watching Annika and Mark with their new infant daughter.

She didn't hear Chakotay come up behind her, so she was surprised when she felt his arms go around her waist and he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"You should probably get some rest," he observed.

"What time is it?" she asked without taking her eyes off the peaceful scene in the room before her.

"Almost 0900."

She snorted.  "Time for my morning coffee, you mean.  You don't seriously expect me to go back to bed this early, do you?"

"You were in there for almost six hours, Kathryn."

She turned to look at him, amused.  "I wasn't the one in labor."

"She's going to be getting plenty of rest.  You, on the other hand…"

She turned her gaze back to the room with no more comment that a "Hm."

After a few minutes, she said quietly, "They look so happy."  

There was something in her voice that struck him – it sounded almost like sadness or regret.

He turned his head to get a better look at her, and he frowned in surprise as he saw her watching them.  There was something he in her expression that he had never observed before – longing.  She looked almost envious of the scene before her, and he could see a sad smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

His frown deepened as he thought.  He had never tried to push Kathryn into any kind of commitment, knowing that she was wary of that sort of thing.  He had just accepted that there were some parts of her that would always remain off-limits, just like when they were on Voyager.

But they weren't on Voyager anymore.

He followed her gaze into the room.  Annika was sitting propped up on the bed with her husband beside her, and they were both admiring the baby in her arms.  Annika turned towards him, and they kissed tenderly before returning their attention to the baby.

He looked back at the woman standing in his arms.

"Kathryn?"  

She looked over her shoulder at him.  "Hm?"

"Is that what you want?"

It took her a moment to figure out what he was referring to, and she looked back at the scene in the room before them.

"A…a family, you mean?"  She thought for a moment.  "I'm happy, Chakotay."

He reached up and took her chin in his hand, forcing her to look at him.

"That's not what I asked."  He regarded her with an affectionate smile.  "I've never pushed you, and maybe I was wrong to hold back for so long."  He moved one of his fingers slowly back and forth on her cheek.  "Is that what you want?"

Her lips parted slightly as she looked into his eyes.  Slowly, she smiled, tears forming in her eyes.

"That's a funny way to propose," she whispered.

He was rendered speechless, so she leaned forward and kissed him.

When they finally broke apart, he looked at her with a foolish grin on his face and reached up to wipe away a tear that rolled freely down her cheek.

"Is that a yes?"

She laughed through the tears in her eyes.  "Yes," she finally sputtered.

This time, it was him who initiated the kiss, oblivious to the stares of the strangers in the hallway as he spun her around in his arms.


	4. Serenity

DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God.  All hail Paramount.  They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go.  All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).

THE LONG ROAD HOME

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER FOUR: SERENITY

A smile slowly pulled at Kathryn Janeway's lips as she felt the sun come out from under a cloud to caress her face.  It was warm for May in New York, and the sun felt good on the exposed skin of her arms and face.  She was wearing a pale blue sleeveless dress, and it fluttered around her outstretched legs as the breeze washed over her.  An empty bottle of champagne rested at her feet beside the basket that had held their lunch.  She slowly reached her arm over the side of the small sailboat and let her fingers trail in the water of Lake George as the gentle spring breeze propelled them slowly forward.  She shifted her weight slightly and sighed with another smile as she moved her head to Chakotay's other shoulder.  He was reclined beneath her, and she could tell by the slow rising and falling of his chest next to her back that the warm breeze, the mid-afternoon sun, the rhythmic rocking of the boat and a little too much champagne had lulled him to sleep.  She pulled her hand out of the water, and after drying it off on her dress she reached behind her and rested her hand on the side of his face.  She closed her eyes again, ready to join him in taking a nap, but a sound off in the distance caught her attention and she cracked one eye open.

It sounded like a dog barking.

She sat up and looked towards her family's cabin near the waterfront, but the sun was in her eyes and she had difficulty making anything out other than the indistinct outline of the house.  Using her hand to shield her eyes from the sun, she thought she could see two or three figures standing on the dock.  One of them appeared to be waving, and she could definitely hear barking.  And it sounded like somebody was yelling at them.

She cupped her hands around her mouth.  "Hello?" she shouted loudly.

Unfortunately, the loud cry without warning startled Chakotay awake, and he bolted upright in the small boat.  The rapid shift in weight threw the boat off kilter, and it tipped over sharply, throwing both of its passengers overboard.

Kathryn shrieked as she hit the water.  The weather may have been warm for spring, but the water was most definitely not warm enough for swimming.  She tread water, coughing to get the water out of her lungs.  She reached up, her hand dripping water, and swept her soaking wet hair out of her face.  She could see Chakotay treading water beside her, shaking his head to get the water out his face.

"What was that?" he asked.

She glared at him.  "You tipped the boat."

He rolled his eyes.  "Obviously.  I meant, what was that God awful loud noise."

She could tell by the way his eyes were dancing that he was joking, so she splashed him and swam over to the boat, which thankfully had not overturned.  She pulled herself back into the boat and reached for a towel, drying her hair.  She shivered, her dress clinging tightly to her skin.  When she moved the towel out of her face, she saw Chakotay trying to pull himself over the side of the boat.  She moved over and offered him a hand to get in.  He took it, but with a demonic grin used his superior strength and advantageous position to pull her over his head into the water with a resounding splash before he climbed back into the boat.

She sputtered as she resurfaced, her hair falling in her eyes.  "Is that any way to treat a superior officer?" she demanded, throwing her now wet towel at him.

He laughed and lowered himself to the floor of the boat, extending a hand towards her.  Deciding that they were both wet enough for one day, she took his hand and allowed him to pull her towards the boat.  When he had her beside the boat, he leaned down and kissed her.  Her lips parted with a moan of pleasure, and she rose out of the water and rested her arms on the edge of the boat.  He could feel her laughing under his lips, and she put her hand around his head and ran her fingers through his hair.

When he pulled away, she was gasping for breath and her face was flushed.  He grinned.  "How's that for treating a superior officer?"

She assumed an imperial attitude.  "Much better," she pronounced, offering him her hands.  He pulled her up into the boat and passed her another towel before turning the sail and steering them back to the dock.

After Kathryn had dried her hair, she looked again at the dock, squinting to get a better view against the sun.  "Looks like we've got company," she said.

He looked as well.  "I can't tell who it is."

She shook her head.  "Me neither."  Her jaw set as another sound reached their ears from the dock.  "But I would recognize that laugh anywhere."

Chakotay listened, then sighed with a shake of his head.  "Tom Paris."

They were close enough to the dock now to see Tom and B'Elanna, who were leaning on the dock posts, incapacitated with laughter.  Miral was sitting on the dock between them, gaily swinging her feet over the edge, and their two-month old son Owen was in a carrier nearby.

"Oh, that was good," said Tom, laughing so hard he had to gasp for breath.

"You should have seen it," roared B'Elanna.  "We could hear you shriek all the way over here!"

"And then he pulled you back into the water," crowed Tom, "That has to be the funniest thing..." He broke down laughing, supporting himself on the post.

"Kersplash!" said Miral for emphasis, throwing her hands up in the air.

At that, her parents broke into new fits of laughter.

"You should see you two," laughed Tom, wiping tears of merriment from his eyes.  "You're absolutely soaked."

As they pulled the boat up beside the dock, he reached over to offer Kathryn a hand out of the boat.  "Don't push your luck, Tom," she muttered in good humor, "Or I'll see that you find out how cold the water really is."

He laughed at that and helped Chakotay tie up the boat.

"We really are sorry we startled you," said B'Elanna.

"What are you doing here?" asked Kathryn.

"Uh…"  B'Elanna looked at her husband.

"I know we're interrupting your honeymoon," said Tom.  "But you invited us, remember?  At the reunion two weeks ago?"

Kathryn looked at Chakotay.  "Has it been two weeks already?"

He frowned.  "It can't be…what's today?"

Tom snickered as he finished tying up the boat.  "Stardate 58356.  May tenth."

"Already?" repeated Kathryn in disbelief.

"I know time flies when you're having fun," said B'Elanna with a leering gaze.  "But really, Chakotay – I know you put off your honeymoon until after the anniversary , but you've been married a month and you two still can't even keep track of what day it is?  Now I feel really bad for interrupting you."

He rolled his eyes and picked up Miral as the group moved towards the cabin.  The young girl squirmed in his arms.  "You're all wet, 'Kotay," she pronounced.

He wiggled his eyebrows at her.  "It's all your Aunt Kathryn's fault."

"Don't believe him, Miral," said Kathryn, falling into step beside them.  "He pulled me into the water when I tried to help back into the boat."

The young girl found this extremely amusing and broke out laughing.

Kathryn rolled her eyes and moved over to walk beside B'Elanna, still drying her hair off.  "And how's the newest little Paris?"

B'Elanna reached down and fondly ran her finger over little Owen's cheek as he lay sleeping in his carrier.  "He's already sleeping through the night.  Thank Kahless  he seems to have missed inheriting  most of my Klingon genes."

"I would have loved to have seen the look on Admiral Paris' face when they were introduced."

B'Elanna smiled.  "Tom thought you might.  He gave his sister a holo-camera, so we've got it recorded for posterity.  It's priceless – I'll show it to you inside."

"Has Miral gotten over her disappointment?  She was looking forward to a sister."

"She changed her mind when one of Tom's sisters referred to her as 'Daddy's little girl.'  She quickly figured out that she didn't want to give up such an illustrious position, and decided she was glad for a little brother instead."

Miral jumped down from Chakotay's arms and tore past them towards the cabin.  "Where'd the puppy go?" she called, tearing around the yard.  

Chakotay whistled.  "Neela!"  A young golden retriever came tearing around the cabin.

"Neela!" repeated Miral, delighted.  "Here, Neela!"  The friendly canine came over to her and began licking her face, much to Miral's amusement.

"Where did she come from?" asked Tom.

"A wedding present from my sister," explained Kathryn.

"What's her name?" asked B'Elanna.  "Neela?"

"It's Bajoran.  My sister and her family spent almost a year on Bajor, and my oldest niece picked up a few words.  She's the one who named the dog."

"It means 'companion,' I think," added Chakotay.

"Very appropriate," said B'Elanna.

Neela came over to her mistress, wagging her tail happily.  Kathryn reached down with her hand, allowing the dog to lick it as she rubbed against her leg.

"Put your things in the spare bedroom," said Chakotay as he opened the front door.  "We'll give you the grand tour as soon as we've dried off and changed."

Tom brought their bags into the house, and watched with amusement as his two former commanding officers made their way up the stairs, laughing and holding hands.

He glanced at his wife, and saw that she was looking at the stairs after them as well.

"Is it just me?"

She shook her head with a smile, leaning down to pick up Miral's bag.  "It's not just you.  I've never seen either of them this happy."  She looked wistfully back at the stairs, then sighed happily.  "It's about time."

*    *    *

"Tuvok!" said Kathryn cheerfully, moving through the crowded room to greet her old friend.

He raised a Vulcan eyebrow.  "Admiral."

She smiled fondly.  "How have you been?  How's your family?"

"Well, thank you, Admiral.  Sek and his wife have had another child, T'lara."

"That's wonderful."  She appraised him affectionately.  "It's been far too long, Tuvok."

He raised an eyebrow.  "Just over six months.  As I recall, the last time we spoke was at the reunion in April."

"So it was," she smiled.

"I take it, Admiral, that marriage agrees with you."

She laughed.  "That it does."  She reached over to rest her hand on his shoulder.  "I don't know if I've ever told you how much your advice meant to me, Tuvok.  If it weren't for you, Chakotay and I might never have found the happiness we have now."

"Your bond is unusually strong, Admiral.  I have no doubt that you would have found a way to be together eventually, regardless of my advice."

"Well, Tuvok, then I guess I have you to thank for giving me a few more years of happiness."

"I am pleased that you are happy, Admiral."

She smiled from ear to ear.  "So am I."

Mark's voice called from the next room.  "Everyone, we'll be cutting the cake in a few minutes, if you all want to make your way in here."

"Hurry up to get cake!" called Miral, and the crowd chuckled.

"Miral is growing more like her parents every day," observed the Vulcan wryly as they started to make their way into the other room.

Kathryn chuckled.  "She certainly is.  In her own defense, though, she's only this demanding when there are parties involved.  Even if they're not for her."

"How is your work at the Pathfinder project proceeding?"

"Very well.  If you're going to be staying on Earth for a few days, you should come out to Utopia Planitia."

"Thank you, Admiral.  I would be interested t see what you are working on."

"B'Elanna and her team are making fantastic progress, and Annika thinks she might be close to a breakthrough."

Tuvok raised an eyebrow.  When she noticed, it took her a few seconds to realize what had surprised him, and she laughed.  "That's what you get for staying on Vulcan, Tuvok.  Have you spoken to her recently?  Seven, I mean."

"We spoke briefly at your wedding, and saw each other at the reunion in April."

"I still find it hard to believe how far she's come from the woman we first rescued from the Borg."

"The difference is remarkable," he agreed.

"Have you met Erin?"

"We have not been formally introduced," he said, coming as close to making a joke as a Vulcan ever would.  "However, since it is her first birthday I suppose I will take a moment to become acquainted with her."

"The family's certainly growing." 

*    *    *

Bright light intruded suddenly on the warm cocoon of Kathryn's mind as she was curled up in bed asleep.  Squinting, she fumbled around with her hand and found the edge of the covers, pulling them up over her head and retreating back into her dark nest.

She felt a hand attempt to pull the covers away from her head, but that resulted in the light reaching her eyes again, so she mumbled and turned her face into the pillow in an attempt to return to her comfortable sleep.

"Kathryn?"

She mumbled something incoherent and turned her face to the other side.

His fingers gently traced a line up her spine, finally eliciting a reaction other than retreating under the covers.  After an unsuccessful attempt at resistance, the corners of her mouth turned up in a smile.  She poked her head out from under the blankets and cracked open her eyes.

"Good morning," said Chakotay with a grin.

She blinked a few times to clear the inexplicable fog in her brain.  Laying on her stomach, she folded her arms on the pillow and laid her head on them.

"What time is it?" she croaked.

"Almost 0715."

"You're joking."

He chuckled.  "No, I'm not.  If you don't get up soon you're not going to make it to Utopia Planitia by 0800 hours.  You said you were meeting Tuvok, right?"  When she still refused to move, he offered, "I'll go start some coffee if you want."

She shook her head, closing her eyes again and massaging her temples.

He reached over and felt her forehead with the back of his hand.  "Are you sure you're feeling all right?"

"I'm just tired."

"Did you have trouble sleeping last night?"

She frowned.  "No, actually.  I haven't slept that well in a long time…but I feel like I've only been resting for a few minutes."

"I can't remember the last time the offer of fresh coffee failed to tempt you out of bed."

She grinned and opened her eyes again, rolling onto her side with her head propped up on one arm.  "Last Sunday.  You made breakfast and came in to get me up.  As I recall, the breakfast got cold long before either of us got out of bed."

He smiled charmingly.  "Sorry, we don't have time for anything like that this morning."

She sighed and rolled over onto her back, closing her eyes again.  After a minute, she opened one eye and looked at him.  "Go start the coffee, and I'll work at getting up."

He leaned over to kiss her on the forehead, then got out of bed and moved off towards the kitchen as he pulled a shirt over his head.

She remained motionless on the bed until the aroma of fresh brewing coffee began to waft into the room.  For once, it wasn't the smell that enticed her to get up.  She knew if she stayed in bed much longer, Chakotay would really get worried, and she didn't want to tell him how exhausted she really felt.  He worried enough about her as it was.

She sat up on the bed, swinging her legs over the edge, but gripped the sheets suddenly when the entire room seemed to spin around her.  She gasped, bending her head down to her knees, and the feeling passed after a few seconds.  

When she was sure it was gone, she stood up on shaky legs and moved over to the closet to dig out her uniform.

After two and a half years back on Earth, she still wasn't used to Starfleet's new style of uniform.  The colors she had worn for seven years on Voyager would always have a place close to her heart.  The new uniforms with their colored shirts and grey jackets just weren't the same somehow, and despite the fact that she had been wearing it for years now, it still seemed strange to look at herself in the mirror every morning.  She tilted her head to the side with a wry smile, looking at the pair of boxed pips on either side of her collar.  Her promotion after they had been back on Earth a year and a half had not been unwelcome or unexpected, but it still seemed strange to her to have people call her Admiral Janeway.  Admiral Janeway was her father, not her.  

That was the other thing she missed – her four pips side by side on the right side of her neck.  She glanced up at a nearby shelf.  Her pips were there, framed, sitting above a holo-image of her with the crew.  She smiled.  Those four pips represented more to her than anything else Starfleet could ever give her.  They were her crew, her family.  They were her relationship with her First Officer, now her husband, a person closer to her than she had ever thought possible.  They were the guilt and responsibility that she had carried with her for seven years, gone but not forgotten.  They were her determination, her will, her fire, that had allowed her to lead her crew over 30,000 lightyears to get them back home.  They were everything that Starfleet stood for.

_"We've made first contacts, made new allies, explored previously uncharted space…and you've always managed to do that while upholding Starfleet principles."_

She smiled to herself.  That had been one of the most deeply moving things Chakotay had ever said to her.  He was her moral compass, and the fact that he stood behind her unconditionally, even when she had defied Starfleet Command, meant more to her than he could possibly imagine.  She wondered if she had ever told him that.

"Maybe I should," she said quietly to herself, reaching up to run her fingers over the glass covering her pips.

"Kathryn?" he called from the other room.

"Coming."  She removed her hand from the pips with a smile and headed for the kitchen.


	5. Expectations

DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God.  All hail Paramount.  They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go.  All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).

THE LONG ROAD HOME

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER FIVE: EXPECTATIONS

Tuvok walked in step with his old Captain as they made their way through the winding corridors at Utopia Planitia.

"You have made impressive progress, Admiral," commented Tuvok.

"High praise from a Vulcan."  She paused and looked at him with a smile.  "Thank you, Tuvok.  Your approval means a lot to me."

He nodded in acknowledgement.

"Here we are," she said, reaching a large pair of doors.  "I thought this might interest you."  They entered a large shuttle bay that was filled with small vessels under construction.

Tuvok immediately recognized the familiar lines of the small crafts.  "The Delta Flyer."

Kathryn beamed.  "All the prototypes passed their test periods with flying colors, so Starfleet has finally decided to start mass producing them."

Tuvok raised an eyebrow.  "Impressive.  Did they retain the Borg weapons design?"

"Absolutely.  It was one of the selling points of the design.  I think one of the comments I read from a test pilot was that it was 'the best equipped, most maneuverable shuttle' they've seen in years.  I think one of them also said the Delta Flyer class made the old shuttles seem like they were steering Galaxy-class starships."

Tuvok's eye fell on the writing on the side of the nearest shuttle under construction.  "The shuttlecraft Jetal?" he read with a raised eyebrow.

Janeway raised her chin proudly.  "That was Tom's idea.  Every one of the new Delta Flyer class ships will be named after crewmembers from Voyager who died."

The Vulcan moved forward into the cargo bay.  "Hogan.  Durst.  Stadi.  Bendera.  Suder.  Kaplan.  Cavit.  Bennet."  He turned to his companion.  "It is a fitting gesture."

"I agree.  It was the least we could do."

A young ensign came up to them.  "Ma'am?  Lieutenant Torres would like to see you as soon as possible."

Janeway nodded for Tuvok to follow her as she left the shuttle bay.

*    *    *

"Good morning, Admiral," B'Elanna greeted them as they entered one of the engineering labs.  "Tuvok, good to see you.  I take it the Admiral's giving you the grand tour?"

"Indeed."

"We just came from the production bay."

B'Elanna was too engrossed in her own work to pay much attention to them.  Lieutenant Ashmore came up to her, showing her a PADD.

"Lieutenant Walker said you'd want to see this right away."

B'Elanna nodded and looked at the PADD.  Her eyes widened and she slapped the PADD into her other hand.

"What is it, B'Elanna?" asked Kathryn, noticing her excited expression.

"This," she said, waving the PADD triumphantly, "Is why I sent Ensign Mowatt after you.  Annika thought she would have something by this morning."

The Admiral reached over and eagerly snatched the PADD.  "And?"

"She did it.  We were finally able to integrate the power systems.  She's run eleven simulations.  All of them worked without a hitch."

"Fantastic work, B'Elanna."

B'Elanna smiled, saving the best news for last.  "We could be looking at a working prototype within four or five months."

Kathryn's head snapped up.  "Five months?  That soon?"

"If I get my best people on it…absolutely."

She handed B'Elanna back the PADD.  "Starfleet Command is going to be thrilled, B'Elanna."

B'Elanna turned to Ashmore.  "Get this over to Jarel and Vorik's team.  Tell them to get to work on the phase conversions, stat."

"Yes, ma'am."

B'Elanna said something else to Ashmore, but Kathryn didn't hear it as she was overcome by a wave of lightheadedness.  Her vision blurred momentarily, and the room seemed to spin around her.  She looked down at the floor, which seemed to expand and fall away beneath her feet.  Disoriented, she reached out for the console in front of her, attempting to stop the room from twisting around.

"Admiral?  Admiral, are you all right?"

She felt B'Elanna's hand on her shoulder, and her dizziness passed.

"I…I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded.  "I'm fine, really."  She took a few seconds to make sure the room wouldn't start spinning again, then stood up and straightened her uniform with a tug.  "You and Annika have your preliminary reports on my desk by 1800 hours.  I'll pass them on to Admiral Hayes first thing tomorrow."

*    *    *

Neela greeted Chakotay at the entrance to their apartment with a wagging tail.

"Hello, girl," he said, ruffling the hair on the dog's head.  He set his stack of PADDs down on a nearby table and followed the dog into the main room.  He stopped in surprise when he saw Neela pad over to the couch next to the window and jump up next to Kathryn -- he hadn't expected to see her home this early when there was so much going on at Pathfinder.

"How did Tuvok enjoy his tour?" he asked, moving into the room.

She didn't acknowledge his presence.  She was sitting on the couch, her jacket and shirt removed and wearing nothing but a tank top.  Her bare feet were resting on the table in front of her, and she had her knees hugged close to her chest, her chin resting lightly on her arms.

"Kathryn?"

She looked up, startled out of her reverie.  "Hm?"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said quietly.  She suddenly seemed to become more aware of his presence.  "You're home already?"

"My class was over at 1700, as usual."

"Oh…is it that late already?"

He frowned -- she wasn't acting like herself.  "Is everything all right?" he asked as he sat down beside her on the opposite section of the L-shaped couch.

She rested her chin on her arms again and ran her fingers through her hair before she answered in a voice barely above a whisper.  "I've been sitting here for…" She took a deep, shaky breath.  "…God knows how long…trying to get up the nerve to pick up that tricorder."

He glanced over at the table.  Near her feet on top of a stack of PADDs was a medical tricorder.

"What?" he said, reaching over to pick it up.  "This?"  He offered it to her, but she started back as if afraid of it.

This was completely out of character for her.  "Kathryn -- what's wrong?"

She tentatively reached over and took the tricorder from him.  She ran her fingers over it and turned it over in her hand before she looked at him again.

"It's possible…I mean, I wondered if…" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before looking him in the eye.

"I think I'm pregnant."

He stared at her in silence for a long time before his eyes were drawn to the medical tricorder.  He looked back at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Should I keep you in suspense?" he asked quietly.

She silently passed him the tricorder before lifting her feet off the table and laying down on the couch.

He pulled the scanner out and opened the tricorder.  She reached over and squeezed his knee with her hand.

"Here goes nothing,"  he muttered, moving the scanner back and forth over her stomach.  

She lifted her head up and watched him anxiously, but his face showed no emotion or reaction as he scanned her.  Slowly, he withdrew the scanner and replaced it quietly in its port at the top of the tricorder.  

He confirmed the readings, them blinked to make sure he wasn't seeing things.

"Well?" she said, her voice trembling.

He shut the tricorder and set it down beside him before he turned to her, slowly reaching over to rest his hand on her stomach as a smile spread over his face.

"You're pregnant."

She exhaled sharply, laying her head back down.  She stared up at the ceiling, motionless for what seemed like an eternity.

"I'm pregnant," she whispered in disbelief.

His grin widened and he took her hand.

"I'm pregnant," she repeated, elation creeping into her voice.

She suddenly sat upright and threw her arms around him.  She buried her head in his shoulder as a sob escaped her, and she felt him squeeze her tighter.  He put his head next to hers and gently kissed her hair.

They remained like that for a few minutes before he put his hands on either side of her head and pulled her away from him.

"Are you sure you're all right?  We should call the Doc, get him to take a look at you, make sure everything is all right."

She shook her head with a tearful smile.  "No."  She reached up and rested her hand against the side of his face.  "I don't want to share this yet.  I want this to be just you and me, at least for now."

He considered that.  "I want you to see a Doctor."

"And I," she said, pulling him over to sit next to her before curling up next to his chest and pulling his arms around her.  "Want to sit here with you and let this sink in."

He tucked his feet under him and pulled her closer, his hands finding their way down her waist to rest lightly on her stomach.

"Okay?" she asked, her voice breaking.

"Okay."  He nodded and leaned forward to kiss the nape of her neck near her collarbone.  "I love you, Kathryn."

"I love you too."

*    *    *

Admiral Janeway shifted uncomfortably in her chair as she approved the status report she was reading and reached for the next PADD in the stack.  The dull ache at the base of her spine was getting worse, and it was making it hard for her to concentrate.  

She had noticed over the past couple of weeks that it was getting harder for her to sit still for long periods of time.  She had spent the entire day at Utopia Planitia walking around checking on the progress of her teams just to avoid sitting behind her desk.  Unfortunately, that had left the stack of PADDs untouched by the end of the day, so she had brought them home with her to finish before the next day.

She winced as another spasm moved up her back.  Pushing her chair back from the desk, she rose and moved into the bedroom, rubbing her lower back with her hands to try and work out the tension in her muscles.  She leaned sideways against the wall, still using one hand to massage her back.  She glanced up at the painting of Voyager that was on the wall, and she smiled wistfully.  She really should move it farther away from her desk, because on days like this, catching up on paperwork, it only served to remind her how much she missed her days in the Captain's chair.

Another dull spasm shot up her back and she grimaced, walking further into the bedroom.  She noticed her reflection in the mirror, and she frowned.  She turned sideways, putting one hand on her stomach and one hand on the small of her back.  She straightened her posture, trying to conceal the bulge in her stomach that was becoming more obvious.  She turned back to face the mirror and gave her uniform jacket a tug, but it was useless.

She broke into a smile when she saw Chakotay behind her in the mirror.  "I don't think I'm going to be able to wear this uniform another week."

He laughed.  "At four and a half months?  I'm surprised you've held out this long."

"It's not funny," she chastised him, trying to hide her smile.  "A Starfleet Admiral isn't supposed  to waddle around the corridors in a maternity uniform."

He rested his chin on her shoulder, examining her reflection.  "Waddle?  You?  Never."

Her smile pulled at the corners of her mouth.  "I expect you to repeat that in three months or so."

"Anytime you want."  He kissed her below the ear and moved his hands around her waist.  He pulled his lips away from her when his hands reached her stomach.

"You can feel it?" she asked with a smile, putting her hands over his.

He ran his hands around the slight bulge, feeling every part of it.  "I swear it wasn't like that this morning."

She looked over her shoulder at him with a raised eyebrow.  "You should know, too.  I'm surprised I managed to catch my shuttle on time."

He didn't answer, fascinated by the feel of their child growing inside her.  "You know, the baby might have turned.  I think I remember B'Elanna saying something about this with Owen.  She said one day she was wearing her regular clothes and the next she was waddling around in a maternity uniform," he said, raising an eyebrow mischievously.

"That's not funny, Chakotay."  Another pain shot up her back and she winced, unable to hide her discomfort.  "Although that would explain why my back is killing me," she muttered, moving her hand around to try and work out the ache.

"Here," he said, stepping back and putting his hands on her lower back, massaging gently.  "How about you take a nice hot bath.  I bet that will work the ache out of those muscles."

She moaned softly as his hands worked on her stiff muscles.

"Kathryn?"

"What was the question?" she mumbled, leaning back against him.

"Would you like a hot bath?"

She rolled her head on his shoulder to look at him.  "On one condition."

He chuckled.  "Kathryn, I have work to do."

She cocked an eyebrow and raised her hands in front of her, pretending to weigh his choices.  "Hmm."  She lifted up one hand.  "Mark papers on the impact of first contact procedures on anthropological study."  She lifted up the other hand.  "Take a bath with your wife."

He rested his chin on her shoulder.  "Kathryn, I'm tempted, but…"

She deepened her voice, imitating him.  "You can get your work done anytime.  Right now, you should take some time to relax."

He sighed.  "How can I argue with such sound reasoning?"

"I always managed to somehow."

He thought for a moment, then chuckled in defeat.  "Go find those vanilla bubbles you like.  I'll start the water."

She grinned in delight and walked off with a bounce in her step.

*    *    *

"Aunt Kathryn!"

Her namesake came tearing out Gretchen Janeway's door towards them as they arrived, followed by her younger brother Adrian.  Kathryn smiled and knelt down to embrace her seven and a half year-old niece in a warm hug.

Pheobe, her husband Liam, and Gretchen followed the children out of the house.

"They've been watching at the window for an hour," said Phoebe with a smile, leaning against the door frame.

Chakotay grinned and reached over to tousle Adrian's hair.  "You just wanted to see if we brought your presents."

The young three year-old grinned and pointed to the bags sitting on the ground between them.  "Is that them?"

"In there?  No."

Katie frowned.  "You didn't bring us Christmas presents?"

He leaned forward and lowered his voice.  "We had to arrange to use a cargo transporter."

Their eyes lit up and they dashed back towards the house squealing.

Kathryn shook her head.  "You shouldn't tease them, Chakotay."

"Just getting in some practice."

She rolled her eyes.

He leaned forward and whispered in her ear.  "Just think…by next Christmas, we'll have one of our own to spoil."

Gretchen started down the stairs.  "Well, don't just stand out there in the cold.  Get yourselves inside.  We cleared out the spare bedroom on the south side of the house."

"Thanks, Mom."

"I hope you're planning on staying at least until New Year's," she continued as they brought their bags inside.

"Oh, I have a lot of work to do at Pathfinder."

Phoebe laughed.  "Told you, Mom.  That means you're cooking dinner tonight."

"Can't you even take two weeks off?"

"That's what I said," grumbled Chakotay in good humor.

"How much vacation time do you have coming to you?" asked Gretchen.

"I'm guessing about a month's worth," said Liam.

"No, I say six weeks," corrected Phoebe.

Kathryn glared at her sister and brother-in-law.  "Two months, actually."

Gretchen stopped and turned around.  "And you can't even take a week off to spend Christmas with your family?"

"Keep saving, Kathryn," said Phoebe.  "You'll need it when you're getting up for 2 a.m. feedings."

"I'd love to stay longer, but there's a lot that has to be done and --"

"We're staying until the first week in January," said Chakotay, raising his eyebrow in Kathryn's direction.

She glared at him.  "I thought we had this discussion while we were packing."

"So did I."

"I thought we decided to stay a few days."

"That's not what I remember."

"You're outnumbered, Kathryn," said Phoebe, taking her arm and leading her inside.  "You're staying.  That's an order."

*    *    *

"Really, Kathryn," said Gretchen as her daughter carried the dirty dishes into the kitchen, "You don't need to do that."

"It's nothing, Mom."

"You should be off your feet."

"I feel fine.  I spend all day walking around Utopia Planitia.  I'm used to being on my feet."

"Which is why you should be taking it easy now."

Kathryn set the dishes in the replicator with a sigh.  "I can take care of myself.  You sound like Chakotay."

Gretchen set down the dishes she was carrying with a loud clunk, startling Kathryn.  "And you sound just like your father," she snapped.

Kathryn frowned and turned to her mother in surprise.  "What?"

Gretchen's face fell and she pressed her fingers against the bridge of her nose.  "I'm sorry.  I…here, let me finish clearing up here."

She tried to busy herself with cleaning up, but Kathryn walked over and put her hand on her shoulder, turning her around.  "What did you mean, I sounded just like Dad?"

Gretchen took a deep breath, her shoulders shuddering.

"Mom?"

She turned her head to look at her daughter.  "You're so wrapped up in being independent…"  She smiled sadly.  "'I can take care of myself.'  That's what your father used to say every time he left on a mission.  He never even gave a thought to what it would do to us if one time he didn't come back."

"Mom, I'm sure he worried about that."

"He still left every time and risked his life."

"That's the price of serving in Starfleet."

The edge returned to her mother's voice.  "That's not what I mean, and you know it.  All I remember is your father brushing me off when I worried about him.  Just like you're doing."

"Mom…"

"I'm sure I don't even know about a fraction of the times that you risked your life in the seven years you were out there, Kathryn.  But I can tell by the way Chakotay is so protective of you that it must have been something he was used to."

Kathryn looked down at the floor, unwilling to admit the justness of that accusation.  "We ran into our share of trouble."

"And I'll bet you never even gave a second thought to your own safety."

Kathryn laughed softly.  "On the contrary.  I was determined to get Voyager home myself.  I couldn't let something like dying get in the way of that."

"Kathryn Marie Janeway!" she snapped, tears filling her eyes.  "How can you speak like that?  I didn't raise you to treat your life as trivial."

"I'm sorry.  I didn't mean…"

Her mother's lip began trembling.  "Finding out after so long that you were alive…We were so…worried sometimes…not knowing if next month's transmission…and then they said you had died on an away mission…" She broke down, covering her mouth with the back of her hand.

Kathryn stepped forward to embrace her mother.  "Mom, I'm sorry.  I know it was hard for you."

Gretchen returned the hug, squeezing her close.  After a minute, she stepped back and laid a hand on her daughter's cheek.

"Kathryn…you need to take better care of yourself.  For your sake, and your son or daughter's."

She nodded with a smile.  "I will, I promise.  But I'm still going to help you clean up."

Gretchen laughed and wiped the tears from her eyes.  "That reminds me…you're absolutely sure you want to be surprised about the sex?"

Kathryn nodded.  "Yes, we decided that a long time ago…but I have a feeling it's a girl."

"What makes you think that?"

"Just a hunch."  She looked up suddenly.  "Don't tell Chakotay."

Gretchen raised an eyebrow.  "He doesn't know about your suspicion?"

"I think he's hoping for a girl too.  I don't want to get his hopes up in case I'm wrong."

Gretchen smiled and starting putting some of the food back in storage.  She turned around abruptly when she heard a glass shatter on the floor.  Kathryn was leaning against the counter, the broken glass at her feet.

She gave a small cry and put her hand on her stomach.  "Mom," she gasped.

Gretchen set down the food with alarm and started towards her.  "Kathryn?  What is it?  Chakotay!" she yelled over her shoulder before turning back to Kathryn, who had her eyes closed.  "Is it the baby?  Is something wrong?"

She gasped softly but shook her head after a moment.  "No, no, I'm fine."

Chakotay burst into the kitchen.  "What is it?"  Seeing Kathryn leaning against the counter with Gretchen hovering over her, his face clouded over and he moved quickly across the room.  "Kathryn?"

She motioned for him to come closer.  "I'm all right.  I was just a little startled."  She reached over to take his hand, pulling him closer to her.  "Here."  She placed his hand on the rise in her belly.  "Can you feel that?"

His eyes widened and he broke into a warm smile.  "She's kicking."

Gretchen smiled tearfully and put her hand on Kathryn's shoulder.  "May I?"

She reached over and took her mother's hand, guiding it to her stomach so she could feel her grandchild kicking.  "Oh," she sighed.

Kathryn suddenly looked up at Chakotay.  "Wait a minute…_she's kicking?"_

He stared back at her before he sighed and looked down at the floor, shaking his head.  "I, uh…didn't mean to let that slip out."

Gretchen smiled and quickly excused herself, leaving to go finish cleaning up.

Kathryn watched her mother leave over Chakotay's shoulder before she looked at him in wonder.  "You know it's a girl."

His eyes searched her face.  "So do you."

Their eyes remained locked on each other for a few seconds before they both smiled simultaneously.

"I have no way to be sure," she said quietly.

"Neither do I.  But I can picture her every time I close my eyes."  He reached over to brush a strand of hair behind her ear.  "She looks just like her mother."

She rested her hand on his and smiled.  "Hopefully she doesn't inherit all my stubbornness."

He leaned forward and leaned his forehead against hers.  "I hope she's exactly like you."


	6. Moving Forward

DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God.  All hail Paramount.  They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go.  All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).

THE LONG ROAD HOME

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER SIX: MOVING FORWARD

"Admiral!"

Kathryn looked in the direction of the voice as she and Chakotay entered the crowded room and saw Mark approaching her with Erin in his arms.

"Mark," she smiled.  "Good to see you."  She reached over and touched Erin on the cheek.  "Hello, Erin."

The young girl smiled delightedly and leaned over, reaching for a hug.  "Apy Versry," she said happily as she wrapped her arms around Kathryn's neck.

She laughed.  "Happy anniversary to you too."  She looked up at Mark.  "Where's Annika?"

He rolled his eyes.  "Talking with Jarel about Pathfinder, of course.  She said you'd probably be joining them shortly.  How foolish of me not to believe her."

"We're trying to work out the kinks in our prototype," she explained.  "We've almost got it, and --"

"You only get the whole crew in one place once a year, Kathryn," Chakotay reminded her.

"I know, but --"

He nodded his head in the direction Mark had indicated.  "Go on.  If anyone's looking for you, I'll tell them where they can find you."

"Thanks," she said with a smile, moving   "I won't be long," she called over her shoulder with a wave as she moved through the crowd.  Before long, she spotted Jarel, B'Elanna, and Annika speaking in a corner of the room.

They were so engrossed in their own conversation that they didn't even notice her approach.

"Did I miss anything?" she asked wryly after watching them for a few seconds.  They looked at her in surprise.

"Sorry, Admiral," said Jarel.  "We didn't see you there."

She waved a hand.  "Don't worry about it.  Have you come up with any further ideas on how to regulate the phase imbalance?"

"Jarel thinks she might have a solution," said Annika.  "We're going to attempt it as soon as possible."

"We were just saying, though," chipped in B'Elanna, "That the neutrino flux still looks a little unstable.  I think it would be a good idea to take the prototype offline and run some simulations."

"If it becomes unstable during flight, the results would be catastrophic," said Annika.

"We should run tests, just to be on the safe side," added Jarel.

Kathryn frowned.  "I was hoping we could move forward in the next couple of months.  How long would these…tests take?"

B'Elanna looked at the others.  "I'd say…"  She stole a sly glance at Kathryn's bulging stomach.  "Six or seven weeks?"

Kathryn was puzzled for a moment, then frowned.  "I appreciate the sentiment, B'Elanna, but I don't want you postponing the project on my account."

"Admiral," said B'Elanna, trying to keep a straight face, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"We really think it's a good idea that we run these tests," said Jarel.

"If the duration of these tests corresponds with your absence for your maternity leave," said Annika, "That is…a coincidence."

"But at least you won't miss out on anything," said B'Elanna slyly.  "And we all know how much you hate to miss out."

She could see they were all trying to keep from smiling, so she sighed in defeat.  "Fine, run the tests."  She pointed at each of them in turn.  "But we never had this conversation, understood?"

"Understood."

She nodded and left them, only allowing her grin to show once she had her back to them.  She had known it was going to drive her mad to be away from Pathfinder when they had finally got their prototype operational, but if all they were doing was running tests on the neutrino flux…she would certainly feel more comfortable being out of the loop for so long.

As she neared the middle of the room again, she looked around for Chakotay.  She found him when his hand appeared in front of her face with a flute of champagne.  She took it and turned around to see him standing behind her.

"It's synthehol," he said before she had a chance to ask.  "Come on, I think I saw a seat over by the wall there."

"I haven't had a chance to mingle."

"People will be able to find you."

"That's not the same and you know it."

He glanced around, then leaned forward and lowered his voice.  "Your back is hurting and you know it."

She sighed at how easily he was able to see through her.  "Fine, let's go sit down."

As had become tradition, Tom Paris tapped his champagne glass with his knife as he overlooked the large group.  As had also become tradition, this failed to do any good and the noise continued unabated, so he raised his fingers to his mouth to whistle.  He took a deep breath, but then felt a tug on his pant leg.  He looked down to see Miral standing next to him.

"What is it, sweetie?"

"Can I do it?"

"Do what?"

She looked at him like he had hit his head.  "Whistle, silly.  I've been practicing."

He laughed and leaned over to lift her up so she was leaning over the railing.  She stuck her pinkies in the corners of her mouth and huffed, but nothing came out.

"Here," said Tom, "Tighten your cheeks…there, that's right.  Now try."

Miral took a deep breath, and this time a shrill loud whistle came out.  "I did it!" she said delightedly as the room quieted down.

Tom laughed and set her down on the floor before turning to the crowded room in the balcony below him.  "As I'm sure you're all aware, that sound means it's time for our yearly briefing."

The room broke out in laughter.

"First on the agenda," continued Tom, "I'd like to extend congratulations to Naomi Wildman, who was just accepted into Starfleet Academy last month.  Naomi, it seems like only yesterday I helped your Mom change your diapers, so it's hard to believe you'll be a cadet soon."

Naomi, standing in the middle of the room, blushed.

"I'm sure you'll do us proud," he finished.  "And we all wish you luck.  In other news, Talia and Nathan Blake, who I'm sure you'll all remember were engaged last time we were all standing here, are the proud parents of a bouncing baby boy, who I understand they've named…Lanal?"

"Lanell," corrected Talia from the floor below.

"Right," said Tom.  "Now, I'm sure you've all heard the most exciting news -- our very own commanding officers will be welcoming an addition to their family within a few weeks," he said, motioning to Kathryn and Chakotay, seated over near one side of the room.  "Having put up with all of us for so long, I have no doubt you'll make fantastic parents.  Although God help us if he, or she, inherits stubbornness from both of you."

The crowd chuckled, and he raised his glass in their direction.  "Starfleet may insist on calling you Admiral, but to us you'll always be the Captain.  After all the ups and downs that fate has put you both through, you deserve every happiness.  Congratulations to both of you."

*    *    *

Kathryn's ears had become attuned to the soft whimpering that usually preceded a full-blown cry, and she was out of bed within a few seconds of it beginning.  She padded softly over to the crib in bare feet and picked up her four month-old daughter.

"Shhh," she said, bouncing her gently on her shoulder as she moved out of the bedroom and towards the replicator in the kitchen.  "We don't want to wake up your father.  He was up with you for six hours last night since Mommy needed the rest."

The baby cooed and rubbed her eyes sleepily, but thankfully stayed quiet.  Kathryn grabbed the bottle from the replicator and turned Taya in her arms so she was laying on her back.  She offered her the bottle as she walked back into the bedroom.  Chakotay was still sound asleep, and she smiled.  Even when he was asleep she could detect the thrilled look on his face that hadn't disappeared since the day Taya was born.

The weather was quite warm for September, so she continued through the bedroom out onto the balcony.  She settled herself into the comfortable chair that she had moved out here for just such an occasion and leaned back as Taya drained the bottle.

It was an uncommonly clear night, and she could see each star as clear as a pinpoint.  "That's Vulcan," she told her daughter, pointing.  "That's where Tuvok and T'Pel live, but you've only met them once.  And that one over near the horizon is Betazed.  That's where Mark and Cassie are from.  And that dim one just beside that trinary cluster is Trabus.  That's where your father grew up.  He promised he'd take you there someday."  She smiled.  "Most of the planets your father and I have seen…I don't even know if you can see them from here.  They're very far away."

Her voice trailed off and soon the only sound of the balcony was the gurgling sound Taya made as she drank.

Sitting here, stargazing in the almost dead silence, brought back a flood of childhood memories.  Ever since she was a girl, laying out on her back in the fields of Indiana, she had always loved looking at the stars.  Knowing that her father was out there somewhere, exploring those faraway places, had given her an unimaginable rush of excitement and pride. 

_"That one's Rigel.  And that one is Kronos, beside that large cluster of stars."_

_"Very good, Kathryn.  That's thirty-four.  Let's see how many more you know."_

"Your grandfather used to visit all those stars, too," she said to her daughter quietly.  "He's the one who made me want to be in Starfleet."  She looked down at the contented baby and traced her finger over her cheek.  "He would have been so thrilled to meet you…"  Tears filled her eyes and her voice broke.  

_"Daddy…__ do you think anybody knows what all the stars are?"_

_"No, probably not, and I doubt anybody ever will.  But that's the whole point of being a Starfleet captain.  You get to visit all the stars that nobody else from Earth has ever seen before."_

_"When I have my own starship, I'm going to visit the most new stars of anyone."_

_"I'm sure you will, Kathryn."_

"Kathryn?"

Startled, she turned around to see Chakotay standing in the doorway to the balcony.  "I'm sorry, what?"

"Do you want some company?"

She smiled and made room for him next to her in the roomy chair.  "Did I wake you?"

"Only because you weren't sleeping next to me."

He began toying with one of Taya's hands, and she leaned her head back and continued looking at the stars.  They all seemed so quiet and peaceful from down here.  It was as hard to believe from her vantage point that there was as much chaos in the entire universe as they had encountered in one part of the Delta quadrant.

"Kathryn?"

"Hm?"  She sighed.  "I'm sorry, did you say something?"

"You looked about a million light-years away."

She smiled wistfully.  "No…only about thirty thousand or so."

He followed her gaze skyward.  "Don't tell me you miss being under constant threat by the Borg, the Hirogen, the Vaadwaur…and who knows how many others."

"No…I miss the excitement.  First contacts, discovering new phenomena.  New cultures, new planets.  Going somewhere where nobody from Earth had ever visited before.  Now I know how the crew of the first NX-class starships must have felt."

"One of my students said the other day that she thinks history will see you as another James Kirk."

She raised an eyebrow.  "For what, the first contacts or the near court-martials?"

He chuckled.  "Both, I imagine."

She sighed with a smile.  "At least I have time to enjoy the moment now."

He smiled and reached for Taya as she finished her bottle.  Kathryn watched her with Chakotay for a few seconds before returning her eyes to the sky. 

A thought that had been in the back of her mind for nearly three months now was taking firmer root.  She had dismissed it at first as ridiculous…but maybe it wasn't.    

Maybe it was time to move forward again.


	7. Providence

DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God.  All hail Paramount.  They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go.  All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).

THE LONG ROAD HOME

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER SEVEN: PROVIDENCE

B'Elanna turned a corner and nearly collided with Admiral Janeway as she was running back and forth in Engineering.  "Admiral, sorry, I didn't see you there."

She followed B'Elanna as the engineer continued walking briskly down the hall.  "I hate to bother you, but I need the personnel forms."

B'Elanna stopped dead in her tracks.  "The what?"

"The personnel forms I sent you last month."

"Oh, right."  Her eyes widened.  "Is that today already?"

She nodded.  "I need all the paperwork finished for the crew requisitions."

B'Elanna changed direction abruptly.  "They're in my office…somewhere.  What time is your meeting?"

"Headquarters, two hours."

B'Elanna shook her head in disbelief.  "When you had that first meeting, three months to get everything up and running seemed impossible, but it felt like we had forever to get the paperwork done."

"Your team did incredible work."

B'Elanna smiled.  "You should bring Taya and Chakotay by for a tour."

"At the rate she's going, she'd be running all over the ship."

"She's walking already?  What is she, seven and a half months?"

"Eight," corrected Kathryn.  "Although, really, she can't go more than three or four steps before she loses her balance."

"That's still incredible.  Miral didn't get to that stage until she was nine months old, at least.  Owen…he was almost a ten months, I think."

They reached B'Elanna's office, or what was left of it.  Spare parts and engineering reports were strewn everywhere.  "I need to find some gullible crewman to clean this up," she muttered as she rifled through the mess.

"So," she said as she continued looking through the piles.  "If you're not going to let Taya run loose just yet, have you at least let Chakotay look around?"

"No, not yet."

B'Elanna stopped her search and stood up, turning around to look at Kathryn.  "You haven't told him, have you."

The Admiral didn't stop rooting around the disorganized collection of PADDs.  "I didn't want to mention it.  I still have to deal with Admiral Hayes, and I have a feeling he's going to need a lot of persuasion."

"Not a word to Chakotay?  He has no idea?"

Kathryn finally stopped looking for the personnel forms and turned around.  "No, and I expect you to keep it to yourself."

B'Elanna put a hand on one hip.  "I can't believe you haven't told him.  Does he think he's just along for the ride?"  Her eyes widened when she saw the guilty expression on Kathryn's face.  "Kahless -- you haven't even told him you're doing it, have you?"

"No."

She shook her head in disbelief before noticing a stack of PADDs on the floor.  She knelt down to pick them up.  "Here we go."

"Thank you, B'Elanna," she said as she collected the PADDs and turned to leave.

"Admiral?"

She turned back around.

"Admiral Hayes is going to be the least of your problems this doesn't work out the way you want it to.  Chakotay won't be very happy if he finds out you kept him in the dark."

"Trust me, B'Elanna," she called over her shoulder as she walked away.

*    *    *

"Come in, Admiral," said Hayes when he saw Kathryn in the doorway.  "Have a seat.  I trust you enjoyed your Christmas holidays?"

"Yes, thank you."

"Although, knowing you, you probably only took…five days off?"

"Four, actually.  You don't expect me to just sit at home when we're at this stage, do you?"

He smiled.  "No, I suppose not.  Not that I'm complaining -- you've made incredible progress.  You brought the crew requisitions?"

She handed him the PADD she was carrying.  "I left the necessary paperwork with your aide."

He nodded as he perused the list.  "I'm glad to see so many of your former crew on this manifest, Captain.  Their experience will be…"  Admiral Hayes frowned and set down the PADD.  "Admiral, with all due respect, what the hell are you thinking?"

She stared back at him, not bothering to answer.

He picked up the PADD again and waved it at her.  "We both know this isn't going to happen.  Starfleet protocol explicitly prohibits this sort of thing."

"Actually, it doesn't."  She handed him another PADD.  "Starfleet regulation seventy four, subsection forty seven.  It says that assigning married officers to the senior staff of the same vessel should be avoided where possible, not prohibited."

"It's out of the question."

"This is a deep space mission, for one.  For another, I'm not leaving without him."

"You'll be in constant contact with --"

She stood up and leaned forward with her hands planted on his desk.  "I'm not leaving without him," she said firmly.

"Then he and your daughter can accompany you as civilian passengers."

"Unacceptable."

He frowned at her tone that bordered on insubordination.  Seeing his displeasure, she reclaimed her seat.  "It will have to be acceptable," he said coldly.  "I'm sorry, Admiral."

"So am I, sir."  She rose to leave.  "How long will it take you to find someone else to command her?"

His face clouded over at the threat.  "You and I both know there's no one half as qualified as you.  If you hadn't volunteered we would have approached you."

"You won't get me on that ship without him in the chair beside mine."  She leaned forward on his desk again.  "And I can assure you that nearly everyone on that list will have the same reaction."

"We won't be blackmailed into this, Kathryn."

"I'm not trying to blackmail you.  You say there's no one as qualified as me to take this mission.  I'm telling you there's no one as qualified to be second in command than Chakotay."

Hayes observed her thoughtfully for a long time before he sat forward in his chair and leaned on his desk.  "You drive a hard bargain, Captain."

He reached for the crew manifest and approved it before handing it back to her.

"Thank you, Admiral," she said, feeling as though an enormous weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

"How soon will she be ready to take out?"

"Lieutenant Commander Torres informed me yesterday that she'll be ready to go within four weeks."

"Is that enough time for you to assemble your people?"

She nodded.  "I'll have my entire senior staff in place by the end of tomorrow."

 *    *    *

"If I may be frank, Admiral, I am surprised that you would consider this."

She smiled and leaned back in her chair with a smile.  "In other words, you think I'm nuts."

On the other end of the comlink, Tuvok raised an eyebrow.  "I did not say that."

She laughed.  "You didn't have to."  She became serious and leaned forward again with her elbows on the desk.  "I know it's asking a lot, Tuvok…but there's no one I'd rather have for this than you."

"Thank you, Admiral."

"Would T'Pel be willing to join you?"

He thought for a moment.  "We will have to discuss the matter.  I believe, however, that she would find it…an acceptable proposition."

She leaned even closer to the monitor.  "Is that a yes?"

He raised an eyebrow.  "I would be concerned for your safety if I was not present, Admiral."

She broke into a warm smile.  "I'll transmit the order first thing in the morning.  Thank you, Tuvok."

He nodded, and she cut the channel before leaning back in her chair with a smile.  Her attention was drawn to the door when the chime rang.  "Come."

Annika entered.  "I have the specifications for the new power matrix that you requested."

She reached her hand out for them.  "Fantastic."  She looked up from the PADD.  "I just spoke with Tuvok."

Annika raised an eyebrow.  "Did he accept your offer?"

"He thinks I'm out of my mind, which is probably why he agreed."

She smirked.  "Out of your mind?  I must admit, I had the same thought originally."

Kathryn set the PADD down.  "Oh really?"

"You spent seven years trying to get Voyager back to Earth.  I would not have expected you to be so eager to leave again."

"Neither did I…but…I need to be out there, Seven.  I'm just not made for a desk job."

"I suppose not."

"Being a starship Captain…it's in my blood.  I just can't accept anything else."

"Have you told Chakotay?"

She sighed.  "He's due here in about fifteen minutes.  I'm going to show him around and then tell him."

"What do you think he'll say?"

"I'm not sure."  She thought for a moment.  "I remember when we were first stranded out in the Delta quadrant, we had a conversation once about allowing the crew to have children…I wondered what kind of life those children would have, traveling through hostile space."

"Naomi grew up to be a well-adjusted young woman.  She doesn't show any ill effects from being raised on Voyager."

"Oh, on the contrary," said Kathryn.  "I think growing up on Voyager was an extraordinary experience for her.  It's given her an incredible courage and determination."

"She learned from the best," said Annika with a smile.  "I have no doubt that your daughter will fare just as well."

"I'm just not sure if that's the way Chakotay will see it."

The door chimed.  "Come in."

Kathryn got a knot in the pit of her stomach when Chakotay entered.  "You're early."

"Sorry.  There was less traffic in the docking bay than I expected."

Annika rose to leave.  "We can finish this later, Admiral.  Good luck."

She smiled.  "Thank you."

Chakotay watched her leave with a frown.  "What did she mean by that?"

"I'll tell you later.  Ready for the grand tour?" she asked, making her way around her desk to join him.

He motioned towards the door.  "After you."

*    *    *

The shuttle slowly rounded the orbital station and the large docking bay came into view.

"There she is," said Kathryn at the helm with a proud smile.

Chakotay leaned forward in awe to get a better look and whistled.  "Wow."

The ship was sleek in design, completely unlike any Starfleet vessel before it.  Instead of separate saucer and drive sections, the new ship was much more aerodynamic in design, shaped more like the Delta Flyer, almost triangular.  There were shuttles swarming all around it, trying to get it ready for the fast-approaching launch date.

"The U.S.S. Providence," said Kathryn quietly.  "NX-94047.  Bio-neural circuitry, sustainable warp of 9.985, and the first hybrid quantum slipstream drive."

"Incredible.  How far have they taken her?"

"The longest run was to Deep Space Seven and back.  In under three minutes."  She reached over and opened a comm channel.  "This is Admiral Kathryn Janeway aboard the shuttlecraft Archer requesting permission to dock."

_Permission granted, Admiral.  We'll need you to transmit your authorization code._

"Transmitting now."

_Confirmed.  Please proceed to docking bay four._

*    *    *

The turbolift doors opened and Kathryn and Chakotay stepped out onto the bridge.

It had a different layout than Voyager's bridge, he noticed immediately.  The command chairs were still in the center of the bridge, but the layout of the stations seemed tighter, more efficient.  Everything was brighter and more open.  He could discern B'Elanna's touch in some of the aspects of the design, Annika's in others.

He followed Kathryn around the room as she pointed out the different features of the ship.  When had made the circuit of the bridge, she moved towards the two chairs in the middle.

She motioned towards one of the chairs.  "Go on.  Try it on for size."

He chuckled.  "Are you sure the first officer won't mind?"

"I won't tell if you won't."

He walked over and tentatively lowered himself into the chair with a satisfied smile.

"So?"

"Comfortable.  I could get used to this."

She stepped in front of him and leaned forward, her hands on the armrests of the chair.  "It's yours if you want it."

He laughed, but stopped abruptly when he saw her earnest expression.  "You're serious?"

She motioned her head in the direction of the chair next to his.  "I don't plan on sitting there without you."

His eyes widened.  "You…you're taking command of her?"

She leaned closer to him.  "Only if you're coming with me."

He thought carefully.  "What about Taya?"

"I don't plan on leaving her behind."

"Are you sure you want to raise our daughter on a starship?"

She knelt down and rested her hands on his legs.  "I know it might be dangerous, Chakotay.  But she'll be with us.  We'll be together.  And we'll be exploring areas of the galaxy that no human has ever laid eyes on before."  She moved one of her hands back and forth on his knee.  "It won't be like last time.  We'll be in constant contact with home, we won't be leaving anything behind…we'll have our families with us."

He took a deep breath and stood up, moving away from her.  She stood up as well and watched him walk around the bridge.  She kept silent, allowing him time to think.

"Who else?" he said, his back to her.

"You're the only one left."

He turned around, surprised.  "What?"

"Our entire senior staff is already on board," she said with a smile.  "Tom, B'Elanna, Annika, Mark, Talia, Harry, Tuvok, Doc…even Neelix."

He nodded, deep in thought, and continued walking around the bridge.  She saw him notice the dedication plaque, and she moved over to join him.

"Who chose the name Providence?" he asked.

"Admiral Paris, actually.  I didn't want another ship named Voyager, and Owen said he thought Providence would be a fitting name, considering all the times we came out of close scrapes in the Delta quadrant."

He reached over and ran his finger along the edge of the plaque.  "I agree.  It's perfect."

"It didn't feel like we were naming it," she said softly.  "It felt like we had just found out what its name already was."

He noticed the inscription below the names of the design team.  "E pluribus unum," he read.

"From many, one," she repeated softly.  "It fits, doesn't it?"

He turned around.  "Only if you're commanding her."

"Am I?"

He looked back at the plaque, then at her again.  "I can't think of anyone better.  And there's nowhere I'd rather be than by your side."

She stepped forward and put her arms around his neck.

"Thank you," she whispered in his ear.

*    *    *

The bottle turned slowly end over end, propelled through the void of space by its own momentum.  The peaceful calm of its motion ended abruptly when it shattered on the hull of the new ship.

The spectators applauded.

"Almost five years ago," began Admiral Hayes, turning from the window to face the gathered officers.  "The U.S.S. Voyager returned home after spending seven years stranded in the Delta quadrant.  Their return marked a new day in Starfleet history when we discovered the wealth of new technology they had encountered.  What you see before you is the embodiment of that technology.  Admiral Janeway and her team have developed Starfleet's first hybrid quantum slipstream drive, capable of traveling at sustained transwarp velocity.  The galaxy will be a much smaller place after today.  The Federation may never be the same."

He turned to Kathryn and her officers.  "I think it's appropriate that Admiral Kathryn Janeway and her officers should be the ones to take command of this new vessel.  They survived the Delta quadrant for seven years and made hundreds of first contacts.  Luck was certainly with them, which is why we named this new starship the U.S.S. Providence.  Admiral, safe journey and Godspeed."

He nodded at her, and she stepped forward. 

"I hereby transfer command of this vessel to you, Admiral," he said.

"Thank you, sir."  She led her senior staff to the lift that would take them to the Providence.

*    *    *

"Captain on the bridge!" announced Tom, who was at his station by the time she and Chakotay made it to the bridge.

Kathryn stopped in her tracks with a smirk on her face.  "Mr. Paris?"

"Sorry, Admiral.  Old habits die hard."

She nodded, her eyes roaming over the bridge.  Her bridge.  "As you were."

The postures of the officers on the bridge relaxed, and Chakotay followed her to the pair of seats in the center of the bridge.  Before she sat down, she stopped and slowly turned around, looking at her officers watching her with anticipation.  Chakotay came up to stand behind her.

"Almost twelve years ago," she began, "We were all thrown halfway against the galaxy against our will.  It took us seven years and a lot of courage, dedication and luck to bring us home.  Now, we're leaving our home again, but this time it's different.  We have new technologies at our disposal, and we'll be using them to explore the galaxy as never before.  We'll be in constant contact with home, and our families will be with us.  One thing is the same, though -- we're in this together.  And there's no crew that I would rather have under me than this one."

She turned to Harry.  "Mr. Kim, do we have permission to leave spacedock?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Take us out, Mr. Paris.  Nice and slow."

"Aye aye," he said, and the ship shook gently as it pulled away from spacedock.

"We're clear," he said.  "I'm taking us out of orbit."

She took her chair, and Chakotay sat beside her.

"Mr. Paris," she said, staring straight ahead with her chin raised high.  "Set a course...for the unknown." 

(That's really the end this time.  I mean it.  If you _still can't get enough of me, go to my index -- I've got more where this came from.)_


End file.
